Michael Moore’s new film, The Slacker Uprising, is being made available as a free download. However, the site says you can only get it if you’re in the USA or Canada. That’s a shame, I’d like to see it. So I’ve decided to lie about where I live and see if I can get it anyway.
It’s always a risk with a film about a school shooting, but it was still creepy to surface from watching Elephant to hear about events in Montreal. As with the shooters in the film we’re still at the stage with yesterday’s events where we don’t really know or understand what drove a man to walk into a school and kill one and injure nineteen others.
Elephant doesn’t offer any explanation for the two young gunmen. Sure they play violent (but very simple looking) video games, have a fascination for guns and watch a documentary on Hitler whilst waiting for their weapons to arrive. They’re also gay, or at the very least experimenting, and one is a fairly talented pianist. However, these factors are given as much weight as the fact that one of their schoolmates is a keen photographer and another has a drunken father. They might be important or they might not, it’s up to the viewer to decide.
The film’s style is non-mainstream. Long tracking shots follow characters as they walk the halls and go about their everyday lives. More than once we loop back to see a scene from a different perspective. For an hour we’re getting to know a little about these kids, like we’re watching some sort of documentary. But the viewer knows what is coming and, as with the old school ensemble disaster movies, can’t help but wonder who will live and who will die. That their troubles are, mostly, so trivial makes them more real than having a gang of OC types with story arcs that can only be resolved by the sudden arrival of a skinny geek with a Tec-9.
Overall, not for someone who wants to be told why America’s youth keep killing each other or is looking for slick storytelling and pat characterisation. However, if you want something more this is for you.
On the same subject, but very different- the essential Bowling for Columbine, Warren Ellis’ Hellblazer issue “Shoot” (which I don’t think was published).
As suggested earlier, here is a list of the books and DVDs lited on Amazon so far. Links are to the product pages, if you want to buy my copies you’ll have to click through to the marketplace and search me out.
There follows the first part of a glance into my buying habits and perhaps my soul-
The Dilbert Principle, Dilbert: The Joy of Work, The Dilbert Future: Thriving on Stupidity in the 21st Century
Life at The Gas was far too much like Dilbert. I bought these three as a set, but they’ve been treated with different levels of respect.
Tells the tale of a daring commando raid on the biggest dry dock on occupied France’s Atlantic Coast. Putting it out of action reduced the effectiveness of Germany’s largest battle ships as they had nowhere to go to get repaired.
In the Beginning…Was the Command Line
A fascinating essay on operating systems by the author of Cryptonomicon.
Hyperspace: A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and…
I’ll be honest, I never got round to reading this. As it’s been sitting on the bookshelf for about four years I guess I never will.
Michael Moore at his acidic best. For those few of you who just don’t get it there’s always Michael Moore is a Big Fat Stupid White Man.
Literary smut from France. A young student falls for the animal charms of the butcher for whom she is working in the Summer vacation.
Michael Madsen is the washed up stunt driver blackmailed into being the wheel man when the President is kidnapped. Cheese, but with some okay car chases.
Directed by Abel Ferrara of Driller Killer fame, this is TV movie fodder about a man becoming a vigilante to avenge the death of his younger brother and becoming what he is trying to fight against.
Dad got this from his book club by accident and passed it on to me. As I’m not about to do any ship modelling I thought I’d sell it.
And there’ll be more in the coming days. I’ll be updating as and when I feel like it.
Technorati tag: Amazon
Time for another look at the buying/clicking habits of all you good people.
This is getting to be quite a list, I think I’m only going to do it through to the end of the year and then find a more compact report/ feedback thing.
Shipped
Gareth McConnell
Going Postal (Discworld S.)
The Battle of Corrin (Legends of Dune S.)
The Wishsong of Shannara (The Shannara Series)
Where Did It All Go Right?: Growing Up Normal In the 70s
The Essence of Happiness: A Guidebook for Living
The Little Book of Wisdom
Always Outnumbered Never Outgunned
Unwritten
Pentax Optio 33LF Digital Camera [3MP 3xOptical]
Coupling: Series 4 [2000]
The Adam And Joe Show
THX 1138 – (Two Disc Special Edition) [1970]
Superman [1978]
Orders
Going Postal (Discworld S.)
Knights of Madness
Mammoth Book of Seriously Comic Fantasy (Mammoth)
The Essence of Happiness: A Guidebook for Living
The First King of Shannara (Prequel to the Shannara Series)
The Flying Sorcerers
The Little Book of Wisdom
The Mammoth Book of Awesome Comic Fantasy
The Pillars of Creation (Gollancz SF S.)
The Wishsong of Shannara (The Shannara Series)
The Wizards of Odd: Comic Tales of Fantasy
Where Did It All Go Right?: Growing Up Normal In the 70s
Destiny Fulfilled
Franz Ferdinand
Gold Diggas Head Nodders & Pholk Songs
Pentax Optio 33LF Digital Camera [3MP 3xOptical]
Harry Potter Six Disc Box Set: The Philosopher’s Stone / The Chamber of Secrets / The Prisoner of Azkaban
Superman [1978]
The Ultimate Matrix Collection (Ten Disc Set)
Click Throughs
The first two make an interesting combination. Pretty much sums up the Spinneyhead phiolosophy- sex and violence sell well.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – 36
THE PEARL: The Classic Magazine of Victorian Erotica Vol. I– 23
Donnie Darko – Director’s Cut (Two Disc Set) [2001] – 14
Northern Soul Memories Vol.1 – 13
Worzel Gummidge – Series 1 [1979] – 12
Around the Sun [Digipak] – 12
Debbie Does Dallas [1979] – 11
A Taste Of Honey [1961] – 11
Fahrenheit 9/11 – 11
Wave of Mutilation – The Best of the Pixies – 10
Complete Superman Collection [4 Discs] (REGION 1) (NTSC) – 9
Prime Suspect 1-5 [1991] – 9
Future Dictionary of America – 8
Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude (PC) – 8
Complete Buffy Collector’s Edition Box Set (Series 1-7) – 8
Story of O – 7
Golddiggas, Headnodders & Pholk Songs – 7
Another Education: AND Ruby Red – 7
Heathers [1989] – 7
Trigger Happy TV – 7
Punisher [1990] (REGION 1) (NTSC) – 6
Burnout 3: Takedown (PS2) – 6
The Passive Solar House: Using Solar Design to Heat and Cool Your Home– 5
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time: Adult Edition– 4
The Very Breast of Russ Meyer (Ultra Screen) – 4
Friends – Series 1 Box Set – 4
Shrek 2 [2004] – 4
Troy [2004] – 4
Postal 2: Share the Pain 2in1 Combo (PC) – 4
The Ultimate Matrix Collection (Ten Disc Set) [1998] – 4
The Adam And Joe Show – 4
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (Platinum) – 4
El Mariachi / Desperado / Once Upon A Time In Mexico [2003]– 4
Valley Of The Dolls / Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls [1967]– 4
Medieval: Total War – 4
Greatest Hits – 4
The Whole House Book: Ecological Building Design and Materials (New Futures) – 4
Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing the War on Terror – 4
Notes on Book Design – 3
The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents – 3
Will They Ever Trust Us Again?: Letters from the War Zone to Michael Moore– 3
Miles Aircraft (Archive Photographs S.) – 3
Starting an Internet Business at Home: How to Make Easy Money from the Web– 3
Sony DCR-VX2100E Professional Digital Camcorder – 3
American Pie: The Threesome (Trilogy Box Set) [2003] – 3
The Punisher – 3
The Best of Bowie – 3
PWEI Product 1986-1994: The Pop Will Eat Itself Anthology– 3
The War Of The Worlds [1954] – 3
Faster Pussycat Kill…Kill – Russ Meyer’s DD-Lights 10 [1966]– 3
Back in the Dhss/the Trumpton Riots Ep – 3
30 Something – 3
I Robot (Collector’s Two Disc Edition) [2004] – 3
Shaun of the Dead (Limited edition sleeve design exclusive to Amazon.co.uk) [2004] – 3
London Calling – 25th Anniversary Edition [2CD + DVD] – 3
Escape From Rubbish Island – 3
Jersey Girl – 3
Punisher [2004] (REGION 1) (NTSC) – 3
THX 1138 – (Two Disc Special Edition) [1970] – 3
Coupling: Series 4 [2000] – 3
Sheep for Beginners – 3
Michael Moore has published a book of letters from soldiers serving in Iraq (due out here later this month). The Guardian has a selection on its site.
Michael Moore from the RNC- Democrats needn’t be afraid.
More Michael Moore from the Republican convention. Today, on being booed more loudly than Saddam or (the unmentioned) Osama Bin Laden.
Michael Moore is reporting from the Republican conference for USA Today. Today, an interview in the street with a man who is what’s known as a Republican In Name Only.
via BoingBoing
Want the perfect library for any occasion? Get a personal book shopper. The article has a number of top ten book suggestions, so here goes-
Microserfs, Douglas Coupland
Out of Control, Kevin Kelly
The Tale of One Bad Rat, Bryan Talbot
Moby Dick, Herman Melville (Okay, I haven’t read this one. It’s on my list of 100 things to do.)
Overlord, Max Hastings
Stupid White Men, Michael Moore
The Dark Knight Returns, Frank Miller
Watchmen, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
Eight’ll have to do for now, I guess.
This is a list for the folks over at Monitor Duty as much as anyone else, but to keep their front page from descending into some sort of flame war, I’ll put it here and invite them over.
A theme over there at the moment is the “lies” of Michael Moore. So, for the benefit of balance, here’s a small resource of other people’s lies.
The liar-in-chief should top the pile, of course. There’s the one I got angry about earlier this year, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg.
Tony Blair lies
Bill O’Reilly Lies, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Fox News, Ronald Reagan (oh, okay, that one isn’t strictly about lies, I’m just tapping into the zeitgeist. Or something.)
I could go on, and I could go deeper. The above were found by typing [Name] lies into google.
And MD appears to be offline right now, so I can’t invite them over until later.
Update Of course, this is a subject I’ve addressed before. And then there’s this from a few days ago, which is very disturbing.
An early review, from the Cannes screening, of Fahrenheit 9/11.
That’s actually the sum total of the report, I’m linking back to the report out of courtesy.
Disney don’t want their subsidiary Miramax to distribute Michael Moore’s new film because they want to protect their tax breaks. (It also seems they don’t want to give further ammunition to the morons who keep calling for boycotts of the company and its theme parks because Disney is so evil it treats its gay employees like human beings.)
Michael Moore himself on the decision
via BoingBoing (check out the URL BB used, buried within it is the following- 05DISN.htm?adxnnl=1&partner=boingboing?NYT_REG_IS_AN_AFFRONT_TO_THE_WEB)
Michael Moore has one of those composite images on its index page today- Wubble U made up of faces of soldiers killed in Iraq (hi-res version here), and an attack on yesterday’s press conference.
The Dubya picture comes on the heels of the mosaic of John Ashcroft made entirely of porn images (the image has been taken down as I write this, but consider the link potentially very un-worksafe in case it ever comes back).
Michael Moore has come out in favour of Wesley Clark, if I were an American I’d be with him on that. Though I do still have a lingering soft spot for Howie Dean.
This guy has obviously never read or seen anything by Michael Moore. One paragraph contains a rather rousing call to arms which is then spoiled by the writers lack of a clue and blindness to how well it describes the attitude of the man he’s trying to mock-
To hell with neutrality, I say. Let’s say a fat No to even-handedness and step bravely into this new year with prejudice, passion and a handful of beliefs, no matter how ridiculous, and the strength to stand up for them.
With journalism this opinionated and weak he should really get a job with Fox News.
Michael Moore has been getting letters from the troops.
And why write off Iraq’s debt but not that of other overthrown dictators?
There are already ample plans to protest Bush’s PR visit to the UK next week. Michael Moore is all for us booing Bush.
in Britain, [..] Stupid White Men was this year the most popular book after Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and the highway code.
The Highway Code? I see the standard of drivers on our roads, and no way are that many people reading the Highway Code.
