"paradiso" found!

i decided to be a sommelier for halloween (i went home, changed into a fresh white shirt, and opened a bottle of spicy mallorcan red...)

and then i parked myself on the couch to watch cinema paradiso.

friends of mine have raved about the film for years--that i'd love it, that it would be one of my favorite movies of all time. i think it's part of the reason i passed on seeing it until now. all that buildup--could the film live up to it?

and then there's the crying. everyone cried, but my sister is my barometer (i cry watching little house on the prairie; she rarely tears up), and not only is cinema paradiso one of her favorite movies, she bawled. i was sure to be a wreck. and i just haven't been in the mood for that.

well...i DID love it! and i held up throughout (a few tears here and there), but with the final scene came the flood. jacques perrin watching that kissing montage--how he shifts in his seat... his hands..and his eyes, rimmed with tears that you can see a-glimmer in the dark--with that sweet, haunting morricone soundtrack soaring ...it might be one of my all-time favorite film scenes.

here it is (starting at 4:51):



you tube video via foreign classics

************

i spent most of this morning thinking about the movie and wanting perspective from past reviews. I pulled two favorite books off my shelf (pauline kael's "for keeps," and anthony lane's "nobody's perfect) and was surprised and sorry that neither volume featured a review of the film.

so i googled. vincent canby pretty well hated it back in 1990 (nytimes subscribers can login to read it). (i wonder if his opinion changed at all after that?) but also on the times site was a brief clyde haberman piece about writer/director giuseppe tornatore. it's a nice little primer about the sicilian native and the early history of the film (written before the oscar win). the bits about the italian film industry are dated, but it still makes me wonder what movie-going has been like in sicily in recent years?

*****

i loved the dozens of film clips within cinema paradiso, but this one left the deepest, happiest impression:




youtube video courtesy of jack11anbar

that is silvana mangano lip synching to flo sandon's rendition of "el negro zumbon" for the film "anna", but the moves are all hers. i love.

and, as if i needed another reason to love her, i found out that mangano's performance in the "earthy" drama riso amaro inspired one of the most hilarious i love lucy episodes (lucy prepares for an audition to star in the "earthy" italian film " bitter grapes" by spending the day crushing grapes).

here is lucy in the wine vat:



youtube video via krunk4theking

i am officially obsessed.

a final bit of trivia: silvana mangano also happens to be the grandmother of food network's toothy, yet comely giada de laurentiis.

music to get laid (off) to

it's been a tough year for our department (as it has been most everyone, everywhere), and we've been worrying and whispering about potential layoffs for months. i've been alternately losing sleep and humming "que sera, sera," thinking about possible next steps, but really always hoping--most earnestly--that i wouldn't need to take them.

for the first time last week, the rumors became disturbingly focused: cuts would come within the week.

sigh...

waiting for the other shoe to drop/the sky to fall/insert any "disaster" cliche here is no fun.

how to cope? i've been running (speedwork and hillwork to ensure just enough tiredness for a good night's sleep) and crying every chance i get. ok, not really crying. (not yet anyway.)

everyone has a song (or six or twenty-six) that provide mind-easing, soul-soothing comfort, for whatever ails them, yes?

or am i merely insane?

well, i've been listening to "crying"--track 2 on tv on the radio's "dear science" album--obsessively, morning to night.

i am digging the whole album, but "crying" is THE ONE, hooked me from the first funky cymbal shimmer. i was in car last weekend with my mom, driving to trader joe's, and i popped it into the cd player for a first listen. poor mom was mid-sentence (something about butternut squash soup?) when i interrupted her--"ooh, i like this, let's hear it again...ooh, ok! i love it! one more time! again!!"

i can't get enough of the funked out bass line, the falsetto and the horns (there's something sort of "fine young cannibals" about it. and prince, of course). it's groovy and hot and yearning. and it's actually sort of apropos (hold your breath through late breaking disasters...got you cryyyyying, cryyying, oh whyyyyin', oh my my my).

it's irresistible. i HAVE to dance and feel good when i hear it.

i think it just might be enough to keep me from crying in the coming days.

(but i welcome more music therapy suggestions...)

(youtube video, courtesy of naughtysauce)

claxography

natalie wood in nyc, photographed by william claxton, in 1961.

william claxton, whose stills of the west coast jazz scene in the 1950s are some of the most intimate and acclaimed, and whose portraits of chet baker chronicled and hastened the musician's ascent to stardom, died today at the age of 80.


i'm familiar with some of claxton's work (any half-decent poster or postcard shop in the city offers this image for sale in one form or another; who hasn't seen this one of sinatra? and this shot was known to me long before chet baker was) but i knew little about the man himself, or the breadth of his career.

and so today, i did some reading...

i learned from the nytimes' obit that he first became known for photographing his subjects, like sonny rollins, in "unorthodox" outdoor settings.

the la times' more anecdotal tribute (a too-amazing-to-imagine encounter with charlie parker) will pique the interest of fledgling photographers and jazz aficionados, and includes claxton's musings on the similarities between jazz and photography ("They're alike in their improvisation and their spontaneousness. They happen at the same moment that you're hearing something and you're seeing something, and you record it and it's frozen forever").

i was most surprised to find out that he was the art director at motor trend magazine for more than a decade. but after reading of his passion for sports cars, race cars, and motorcycles, which he shared with another of his oft-photographed subjects, steve mcqueen, it made perfect sense.

part of claxton's talent--and some might call this an art--was his ability to engender the trust of his subjects, by getting to know them, and letting them know him. and he promised not to portray them in a negative way. he was, in his own words, "dedicated to beauty" and he knew how to find it in his subjects.

these days, when photos can be and are so readily manipulated, and we, as a culture, delight in catching celebrities (and non-celebrities!) at their most compromised (and i can't say i'm immune to this phenomenon myself), and intimacy is often mistaken for being merely exposed, claxton's work takes on even more significance. his commitment to the expression of beauty, real intimacy, and honesty through photography is something that, hopefully, never gets lost.

for more on william claxton's fascinating life and work, and to hear "claxton on claxton," visit his site.

no more funny business!

rafa puts an ice bag on his head in the heat during his match against viktor troicki of serbia at the us open tennis tournament on august 30, 2008, nyc. photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images via tennis.com

day 8 of the us open will be day 1 of live tennis for me. and i am not messing around.

i spent the day waiting for them to post the order of play (cheers! nadal plays querrey at around 1pm!), catching up on some of the better us open reports in the ny times (favorite line: Tipsarevic, who appears as if he could be the love child of Salma Hayek and Sam Waterston, is a voracious reader who regularly quotes the Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky...) and napping (because tomorrow is going to be good, long day).

i also had a little 3-way going here at the apt: i had the tv broadcast (on cbs and usa), usopen radio, AND live scoring on usopen.com going simultaneously for a good part of the afternoon.

this may seem like overkill, but tv tennis commentary for this grand slam being what it is, desperate times call for serious plan-bs and -cs. i couldn't bear tracy austin as a player (the pinafores, the bounce-bounce-bouncing on her tippy-toes, the nervous hand-blowing) and i'm even less enamored of her as a commentator. her voice is as tense as she used to appear on court, and she is far more defensive in the booth. between her, and mary carillo (channeling ann curry--why does everything have to be oh-so dramatic? ) and the joyless jim courier, i had no choice but to hit the mute button on the tv, and tune into the radio broadcast on the site. (way back in june, when i was trying to protect myself from martina navratilova's endless, ruinous monotone wimbledon commentary, i figured out that i could, thanks to dvr, properly sync radio wimbledon with the live tv broadcast. and that allowed me to enjoy andrew cotter, and virginia wade's poetic style (“ivanovic is this beautiful statuesque figure of a player, but she is being beaten below the knees…that net is taunting her today…it spared her against dechy") and the refreshing, uninhibited enthusiasm of andrew castle, and john lloyd, and others. there was one line, so insightful and apt, i'll never forget it: "nadal is very much like the tide, isn't he, he just keeps coming at you." i will have to find my notes to see who came up with that one...)

and yet, even as i was happy to have the us open radio broadcast available, it still didn't solve the matter of all the compelling matches that weren't being covered, on tv OR on the radio. explain how we were made to suffer through yet another listless lindsay davenport match on friday night, when robredo was playing safin, and moya was playing tsonga? and today, no robredo v. tsonga? and those are just the matches i took special interest in. there were many other hard fought, top-flight tennis battles for avid tennis fans. thankfully, those of us who wanted a little more could indulge in more ways than one.

news!

untitled (me) by matias aguilar.

i've been inconsistent with posts, but i don't want any more time to pass before i call attention to a couple of very cool sites:

zovig's callastyle site: you can find out more about her, and her image consulting business. there's also a link to her truly fashion -"inspired" blog -- she'll have you contemplating style, and help you confidently embrace your own.

matias' photography site: humor and melancholy. evocative stillness. vintage and modern. gritty. reflective. those words come to my mind when i see his photos. take a look, take some time. see if you agree. perhaps you'll have more, better words to describe them.

in the end, i hope you'll enjoy them as much as i do.

visit his blog to see who's influencing and inspiring him.

he took these photos of me a few years ago, in what will forever be one of my favorite places--my old studio on jane street. he captured a couple of "moods," which i very much appreciate.

untitled (me). by matias aguilar.

golden!!!

photo by al tielemans/si, via si.com

photo by al tielemans/si, via si.com

photo by bob rosato/si, via si.com

complete si ladies individual all-around competition photo gallery here...

nastia, girl!

photo: vladimir rys/bongarts, via getty images and the nytimes.com

i've managed to miss a lot of the olympics--between seeing "the dark knight", hearing accordion bands, going to hip-hop birthday parties...and work...and being sick (and under dr's orders to go to to bed early)--and despite near 24/7 coverage on a zillion nbc channels.

but i am definitely carving a few hours over the next handful of days to watch nastia liukin and the other female gymnasts, for the women's team final (tonight), the individual all-around competition on thursday night, and the individual events on sunday-tuesday (aug 17-19).

i'm not going to make any predictions--and here's an obvious observation: shawn johnson seemed impervious to the pressure and nerves that affected everyone else during the qualifying--but i'm going to be rooting hard for nastia liukin. before an ankle injury in '06, that required surgery and kept her out for basically all of 2007, she was women's gymnastics. there are a lot of powerful gymnasts in the world and they all perform tricks that defy our vision of what the body can (and should?) do, but none have her exquisite lines. (photos below taken at the 2008 olympic trials, via liukin's website.)

liukin will compete in the individual all-around, and the event finals for beam, floor, and bars, so you'll have many chances to see for yourself. here's the schedule....

enjoy!

she and him...are pretty fantastic

cameras flashed like strobe lights from moment she and him took the stage. and zooey deschanel looked a little overwhelmed.


she--angel-faced, in a silver-sequined, vintage halter dress--is a slip of a thing. from my vantage point (not close), i could clearly see her ribcage, and it was a little alarming. i wanted to offer her one of those empanadas that they sell at the venue. were it not for the generous bouffant, and the colossal white flower on her headband, how very small she would have looked on stage...

but oh, what a voice. a strong, clear, capable instrument. if she were ever so inclined, she could make the transition from indie pop darling/cute, quirky songstress, to convincing chanteuse. some years from now, i would love to hear her ooohs-ing through a cabaret set at some swanky nightclub.

as for him--his voice is used as kind of an oddity on the recording. i sort of love that, of course. but on stage, he sings a true "second voice" and does it well. with his sexy guitar stylings, he just might be a more compelling presence than her. he can play with real abandon, and some of my favorite moments of the night were the amazed, joyful smiles she gave him whenever he did.


she's an undoubtedly adorable, but timid tambourine player--i kept wishing she'd just go wild with the thing. i kept thinking--this is the gal that wants to play janis joplin? she could do it, of course, i think she has the voice in her, but the stage showmanship would require real acting.

all of that said, i loved the show! i really did. they sound very true to the record. the only somewhat disappointing rendition? "sweet darlin'" --they sang it like "camptown races." part of the magic of that song is "the build" toward the end. but they started so fast, too fast, there was nowhere to go with it, but off stage. and so they went...(but came back for their encore).

here are a few videos. you get the gist of how "true" they sounded, i think. terminal 5 was not "camera friendly" in any sense. this was all I could get.

and jojo, these are especially for you...

black hole


you really got a hold on me


this is not a test


a new zooey tune

looking forward...and back, a bit...

so so cute!
Originally uploaded by ata08

i've never been keen on learning to knit, but seeing pip-squeak chapeau etc.'s exquisite and adorable collection at the brooklyn designs show a couple of months ago got me thinking it might be the perfect winter 2008 activity...

but it will be a long, long...long time before i can create hats and shawls and scarves of a quality to match theirs, so i might have to invest in a few items.

i heard there's a sale on some of their spring items, through august 10. i might wait til the fall, but swoon away at the full collection here, or at a store near you...

be warned: it may lead to winter longings...

the news about the sale had me remembering the fun day i had with teresa, zovig, and a "man called mate." reminisce a bit with me here.

*****
links to favorites from the show:

the corian and walnut table by françois chambard, of UM.

i also fell a little bit in love with the gentleman/designer, colgate, also of UM. i'm guessing he designed these colgate chairs. i could have chatted with him all day...

the osomoto gateway table …beautiful wood top.

the constellation dining table by palo samko . walnut slabs, with watch gears that make up the “constellation.” stunning.

and

lola’s lounge chair from laidman fabrication.

mad men and a funny lady

tomorrow, one or more of my friends at work is going to ask me what i did this weekend.
and when i tell them about my sunday, and the fact that i spent nearly every hour of it inside my little apartment, i will feel not a hint of embarrassment.

why?

it's a very humid 91 degrees out.
and
there's a MAD MEN MARATHON on AMC.
why leave home?

it's impossible to escape the buzz and the acclaim (16 emmy nominations...), so don't bother.
don't try to resist it.
just hunker down with the complete season 1 dvd set.
try to pick the top 5 of 500 lines worth repeating, if only for the kick of letting them slip from your lips...(that sandwich is making me sad...i bet daily friendship with that bottle attracts more people to advertising than any salary you could dream of...)
let all of the sexy, stylish intrigue waft over you like a million smoke rings...
and let the smell of it stick to you until season 2 premieres next sunday, at 10pm.

photo via http://www.amctv.com/originals/madmen/

***

a couple of years ago, at a get together with my younger cousins, i very reluctantly joined them to watch the dvd of best friends. i cringed through the first several scenes, until anna faris delivered the line, "god, i want to lick your skin off." i almost spit up my coca-cola. she plays a britney-jessica-ashley "musician" type with the kind of ridiculous gusto a role like that deserves. ever since then, she's been on my list of favorite funny ladies (with judy greer).

behold, she's featured in this week's nytimes sunday magazine, with several other "funny faces."

love her. she's like a super-hot nellie oleson? in any case, super hot.

anna faris photographed by ruven afanador

one last (but certainly not least) thing: ms. faris is wearing a ring (left hand, 4th finger) by philip crangi, an amazing jewelry designer that my sister has studied with. she's always spoken glowingly of him, and i've become a huge fan...

you may have seen him featured in a recent gap ad , or heard that he's been collaborating with vera wang for a line of jewelry for her spring 2008 and (upcoming) fall 2008 collections.

the nytimes photo doesn't allow you to appreciate his work (understatement of the day?), so check out some of his designs at barneys....and of course, on his website, philipcrangi.com.