23rd St Station
Disembark Here for
Hotel Chelsea
Free storage from box.net
The prospects of Factory Girl being a major turkey seem greater every day. We read that the Edie's Screen Test scene is to be reshot.
In some senses, I want this movie to succeed so that my signed and numbered by Billy Name still of Edie being screen tested [pictured] appreciates to reflect it's real significance.
We watched a fascinating film from the 1970s renaissance in Australian cinema called Oz [20th Century Oz in the US] last night.
Oz, released in 1976, is a glam-rock road movie that could sit comfortably with other classics such as the Rocky Horror Picture Show or the Phantom of the Paradise. Oz is a no budget film that retells the Wizard of Oz story against a dramatically different backdrop.
Borrowing from IMDB:
Dorothy is a sixteen-year-old groupie riding with a rock band when, suddenly, the van is in a road accident, and she hits her head. She wakes up in a fantasy world as gritty and realistic as the one she came from and learns she killed a young thug in the process. A gay clothier called the Good Fairy gives her a pair of red shoes as a reward to help her see the last concert of the Wizard, an androgynous rock singer. She is pursed by the thug's brother who attempts to rape her on several occasions. She also meets a dumb surfer, a heartless mechanic, and a cowardly biker.
This film screams to be seen on the cult circuit where, I believe, it was once paired as a double feature with RHPS. For the Rocky Horror trainspotters, there are several connections to the original Australian stagings of the Rocky Horror Show and the influence of the show is most apparent, particularly in the costuming. The Bowie-esque Wizard is a sight to behold. Extra fun can be had with the awful fashions to be seen. Oz provides a glimpse at how Australia looked, sounded and felt in 1976, when we still had a certain naive charm...
Below, commentary I submitted to IMDB is reproduced in a wilfull ignorance of having handed over my copyright to them.
I imagine that people outside Australia who are interested to see Oz will be rewarded for being resourceful- I have a permanent copy in my collection.
Wow! An amazing, lost piece of Australiana AND a lost 70s glam-rock film rolled into one. This film warrants viewing simply to see what can be done with next to no budget but a lot of enthusiasm. As a retelling of the Oz story, the film borders on becoming too obvious but it is saved by it's eccentricities. The chance for a glimpse at how glam rock manifested in Australia will delight fans of the genre. This film used to be double featured with the Rocky Horror Picture Show, an indicator of the type of film that Oz is. While not as frivolous or well constructed as RHPS it's hard not to have fun with Oz.
Surprisingly, Oz has aged well, perhaps a by-product of how determinedly set in the real Australia of 1976 it is. The passage of history shows that many of the ideas being explored would eventually enter the mainstream. The willingness of the film to give prominence to gay characters is notable, especially as it dates to the 'revolution' period for the Australian gay rights push.
The performances range from flinchingly amateur to finely nuanced brilliance. The direction is lacking in subtlety and much of the dialogue may have benefited from an extra draft or two. Somehow, these flaws add to the appeal of the film which is mercifully unpretentious. Much like Australia in the 1970s this film has a certain naive charm.
There are several connections to the original Australian stagings of the Rocky Horror Show which will keep obsessives on their toes.
Oz is most certainly a minor classic and a potential cult favourite worthy of review. Laugh at the atrocious 70s fashion, swing along with the AusRock soundtrack, leave ANY expectations at the door and Oz is likely to delight
Link: Oz at IMDB
Our campaign against Sienna continues. These pictures, found cruising the web late at night, reveal just what a skanky ho she is. I can't make out what she thinks she is wearing but even I know it's heinously inappropriate for Manhattan. Indeed, Sienna looks like she should be swapping cigarettes for blowjobs at one of Sydney's less salubrious beaches.
Sienna Miller- NOT Edie Sedgwick
Well, gosh. It's confirmed. The Hotel appears in the Leonard Cohen doco. We await with antici...
Click here to visit the film homepage.
CINEMASOURCE SYNOPSIS
This documentary on the legendary singer-songwriter features performances by those musicians he has influenced. Woven through a riveting tribute is a career-spanning interview with the man himself. Sprinkled with his own artwork and personal photos, Cohen speaks of his stately writing process; "savage criticisms" exchanged with fellow Montreal poets; the scene at the Chelsea Hotel; tea and oranges with the real Suzanne; his retreat to Mt. Baldy and more.
I sense we're in for a slew of biopics that wil have scenes shot at Hotel Chelsea. If Capote's success at this year's Oscars[TM] is an indicator, Stanley 'diamond' Baird will be able to buy another yacht from the upcoming location fees.
So far, This Dylan pic sounds promising, pity they decided to make it about Dylan!
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THINK you know your Bob Dylan? Which one of the following statements about the iconic singer-songwriter is not true? A) The man of few words is doing a radio show; B) The artist is selling rarities through Starbucks; C) He will be played by Cate Blanchett in a biopic.
Though the willowy Blanchett portraying a mumbling Minnesota-born Jewish man might seem the most far-fetched and therefore the correct answer, it's a trick question. All options are true, marking yet another curious chapter in Dylan's history.
Details of the movie, first mooted three years ago, are emerging. Among them is Blanchett's casting as the young Dylan, alongside Christian Bale, Ben Whishaw and Richard Gere, all of whom will place Dylan at various stages in his career.
Heath Ledger has replaced Colin Farrell to play Dylan in the 1970s; Julianne Moore and Charlotte Gainsbourg have joined the cast; and Ledger's partner, Michelle Williams, will play Blanchett-Bob's love interest.
Director Todd Haynes, who made Velvet Goldmine based on David Bowie's life, is said to be still searching for another Bob for the movie, loftily titled I'm Not There, Suppositions On A Film Concerning Dylan, or I'm Not There for short.
British music newspaper NME says Haynes is seeking a young black woman to portray the musician's "inner blackness".
"Bob Dylan was somebody who has rejected all of the various personas that he has embodied over the years," Haynes said in Cannes last week.
"He continues to move forward by discarding himself, so my idea is to put together a film of multiple characters and tell their stories simultaneously."
Haynes has gained Dylan's approval. The man who wrote protest anthems in the 1960s and who turned 65 last week is giving the director access to his back catalogue, which will be reinterpreted by Jack White, P.J. Harvey and Michael Stipe.
News in our box says that Craig Highberger, auteur of our beloved Jackie Curtis: Superstar in a Housedress, has a new film launching in Gotham soon. Craig will be in attendance at the world premiere screening of Jack Mitchell: My Life Is Black and White, as will a selection from the boldface names interviewed in the film.
We can't vouch for who will be there but some of our favourite boldface names in this film include Patti 
LuPone, Ed Albee and Ned Rorem. Mitchell, subject of the film, has photogrpahed a jaw-dropping array of performers and artists as diverse as Gloria Swanson and Keith Haring. Reproduced here is Angela Landsbury in high glamour mode.
Jack Mitchell: My Life Is Black and White, will screen as an official selection in NewFest 2006: The 18th New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival.
When and Where? Tuesday, June 6th, 5:30PM ONLY at the AMC Loews 34th St Theater (at 8th Ave) New York City
Find Out More
Jack Mitchell: My Life is Black and White homepage including trailer.
NewFest Website
And because too much information is never enough, the full Press Release.
If anyone wishes to sponsor my attendance I promise to buy you a NY hotdog!
News at Eight.
NewFest 2006: The 18th New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival will present the world premiere of Craig B. Highberger's new feature-length documentary:
Jack Mitchell: My Life is Black and White
The film examines the life and work of a celebrated photographer of major creative and performing artists, whose career spanned more than six decades. It is part of NewFest's special focus on the arts and documentaries that explore the creative process and the intersection of sexual identity.
The documentary includes hundreds of Mitchell's photographs, plus interviews with friends and subjects including playwright Edward Albee, critic Clive Barnes, dance greats Merce Cunningham, Judith Jamison, and Kevin McKenzie, Broadway star Patti LuPone, NYPL curator Madeleine Nichols, Mitchell's partner of nearly 50 years Robert Pavlik, author/composer Ned Rorem, Broadway producer Cyma Rubin, NY Times Photo Editor Lonnie Schlein, and Warhol Museum Assistant Director John W. Smith.
Please join us if you can – filmmaker Craig Highberger, Jack Mitchell and many of the interviewees will be there!
World Premiere Screening: Tuesday, June 6th, 5:30PM ONLY at the AMC Loews 34th St Theater (at 8th Ave) New York City. View the festival guide here:
http://filmguide.newfest.org/tixSYS/2006/filmguide/eventnote.php?EventNumber=1186Online ticketing will be available at all times for NewFest members beginning Friday, May 19 and for the General Public beginning Wednesday, May 24.
Visit the film website and view the 2 minute trailer of the film, and explore a gallery of Mitchell's famous photographs: http://www.jackmitchellmovie.com/
Straitjacket is one of our most favoured of the schlock genre from which it comes and a Joan Crawford performance that compares to the great Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?
Straitjacket comes from Joan's 'anything for a role' years but stands as unique for a couple of reasons. The film is a production of the notorious gimmick peddler William Castle. In Straitjacket, Joan Crawford wielding an axe is the gimmick. As gimmicks go, I approve.
The film is most certainly a bad movie, the special achievement here is the way in which it is bad. The script is awful leaving Crawford little option but to retreat to increasingly extreme eyebrow acting. The film is stylistically fascinating. It is shamelessly derivative of Hitchcock but the cinematography remains outstanding.
The real thrill to be had here is in the subtext that can be applied. Straitjacket is the story of an axe wielding, criminally insane mother and a doe eyed innocent daughter.
We urge you to track this one down. In the meantime, some screen captures of the great Crawford to get your juices flowing.
Young wife and mother Crawford returns from a night behaving like a hussy in the local tavern to find her husband in bed with another woman.
Is that an axe in the foreground? Do you sense a crime of passion in the making...?
Hmmmm.... this looks serious.
The ultimate price for using wire hangers?
Note how much this scene resembles Frank N Furter wielding his pick in Rocky Horror.
Moments like this call for serious eyebrow acting.
Twenty years later, Joan returns from the mental asylum to stay with her daughter. You can tell that she has suffered, she is wearing a drab wig.
As uneasy reunion between Crawford and daughter. Joan is unsettled by finding the sculpture of herself looking exactly as she did twenty years ago.
Fortunately, the kitchen is well stocked with Pepsi.
Things start to get weird for Joan as the meat is carved...
This shot looks remarkably like Dr Frank watching the dinner being carved in Rocky Horror.
To her great alarm, Crawford awakes to find two severed heads in her bed
.
But the heads were just a bad dream.
Joan's daughter takes her shopping for a new, less drab look. Fortunately, the exact dress and wig that she was wearing in reel one are for sale on Hollywood Boulevard.
The farmhand invites Joan to behead a chicken. Will she withstand the godawful background music?
The return to madness is signaled by some first grade eyebrow acting.
Worried by Joan's mental state and some unusual goings on... the family call in Miss Crawford's personal psychiatrist.
And that's all in the first 15 minutes!