Music

Brazilian Sounds

December 11, 2008

♫ Paralamas do Sucesso – Uma Brasileira ♫

There are only a few brazilian musicians that I actually like. Zeca Baleiro, Marisa Monte & Adriana Calcanhoto are on my list. estão nessa minha lista. But I’ve been a bit nostalgic so I decided to look things up on YouTube and ended up on memory lane. I went all the way back to 1996. when I used to go to the old concert hall Metropolitan in Rio very often. In that year I saw Paralamas do Sucesso, Skank, Cássia Eller, Raimundos, O Rappa… I remembered how I used to think Raimundos was very “heavy”. I looked up their video Puteiro em João Pessoa and had a blast (the song title translated to Whorehouse in João Pessoa). In 1997 in moved to João Pessoa and years later I saw Cabruêra perfome live in Roda Viva, the famous whorehouse in João Pessoa. In my trip down memory lane I realized how good brazilian video clips were. I don’t know if they still are, but compared to european and american clips, the brazilian ones were very creative.

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Art

The Lady of Shallot

December 4, 2008

♫ Tori Amos – Tear In Your Hand ♫

John Williams Waterhouse’s The Lady of Shallot is my all time favorite painting. When I went to London the last time, I simply had to go to Tate Britain so I could see the painting. I just stood there, staring at it for more than 15 minutes. It’s beautiful, enigmatic, melancholic… just how I like it. I like al of Waterhouse’s work, but this ones, if by far, my favorite.
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Art Personal

Being Human

September 10, 2008
♫ Eddie Vedder – Society ♫
The other day I was on my way home, sitting in the tram, and I overheard a conversation between a father and his son. The boy could not have been older than 8 years old. They just came out of a morning performance of an opera by Verdi. The boy was fascinated but he didn’t completely understand all that he had seen on stage.
The opera happened to be Othello, based on Shakespeare’s tragedy.The boy kept asking what exactly had happened between Othello, Desdemona, Iago, Cassio and Emilia. The more the father tried to explain, the mothe confused the boy became. It wasn’t the plot that left the boy consufed but the actions of human beigns, and why they acted this way.How can you explain to a child all the wickedness and manipulations human beigns are able to commit? It would be easy to tell him that the opera was just ficction but soon this boy will grow up and  come across some of these human traits. Hopefully not in shakespearian proportions…

What always drew me to Shakespeare’s work is that his tragedies are human, driven by feelings. There is no will of a god at play. His fate is not a divine fate, but very earthly and human.

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Music

The Eternal

September 1, 2008

♫ Joy Division – Twenty Four Hours ♫

I’m addicted to Joy Division. Again. Melody, lyrics, rhythm… everything makes sense. Ian Curtis was a great poet. A new movie has been released about the band, the documentary Joy Division. Grant Gee’s movie is a complement to Anton Corbijn’s Control. The documentary contains interviews and concert footage. It’s not just a portrayal of the band but of the music scene it erupted from. Highly recommend it.
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Arte Pessoas

Mulher Póstuma

August 26, 2008

Se Nietzsche é o homem póstumo, Lou Salomé é, com certeza, a mulher póstuma. Amiga, aluna, amante, musa e inspiradora de vários gênios de sua época, entre eles Nietzsche, Paul Rée, Rilke, Wagner e Freud. Escreveu livros, poemas e dedicou-se à psicanálise. Alias foi a quem Freud confiou o tratamento de sua filha. Ponho aqui um dos poemas de Lou que Nietzsche musicou: Hino à Vida

Claro, como se ama um amigo
Eu te amo, vida enigmática
Que me tenhas feito exultar ou chorar,
Que me tenhas trazido felicidade ou sofrimento,
Amo-te com toda a tua crueldade,
E se deves me aniquilar,
Eu me arrancarei de teus braços
Como alguém se arranca do seio de um amigo.
Com todas as minhas forças te aperto!
Que tuas chamas me devorem,
No fogo do combate, permite-me
Sondar mais longe teu mistério.
Ser, pensar durante milênios!
Encerra-me em teus dois braços:
Se não tens mais alegria a me ofertar
Pois bem – restam-te teus tormentos.

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Art People

Posthumous Woman

August 26, 2008

♫ The Mary Onettes – The Laughter ♫

If Nietzsche is the posthumous man, Lou Salome surely is the posthumous woman. Friend, pupil, lover, muse and an inspiration to many geniuses of her time, like Nietzsche, Paul Rée, Rilke, Wagner and Freud. She wrote books, poems and dedicated Escreveu livros, poemas e devoted her life to psychoanalysis. It was. Lou was the one whom Freud trusted the treatment of his own daughter. Here is one of her poems, which Nietzsche put to music: Hymn To Life.
Surely, a friend loves a friend the way
That I love you, enigmatic life —
Whether I rejoiced or wept with you,
Whether you gave me joy or pain.

I love you with all your harms;
And if you must destroy me,
I wrest myself from your arms,
As a friend tears himself away from a friend’s breast.

I embrace you with all my strength!
Let all your flames ignite me,
Let me in the ardor of the struggle
Probe your enigma ever deeper.

To live and think millennia!
Enclose me now in both your arms:
If you have no more joy to give me —
Well then—there still remains your pain.

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Music

Swedish Sounds

August 22, 2008
If you are anything like me, you will love The Mary Onettes. These swedes make tunes in the likes of The Cure, The Smiths, Joy Division e with an 80’s feeling. After hearing one of their songs on Grey’s Anatomy and got the whole album and haven’t stopped listening to it. Last week I ordered the CD and the EP from their label: Labrador. I highly recommend it.

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Movies

Review: Stardust

October 14, 2007

♫ Celtic Frost – Drown in Ashes ♫

Stardust is Matthew Vaughn’s new movie, based on Neil Gaiman’s book. The movie is beautiful! It’s a fantasy movie, almost like a fairy tale. The movie doesn’t pretend to be something it’s not, a “no BS” movie. You know who the bad guys, you know who the good guys are; but it doesn’t matter. What matters is how the story is told. The whole cast does a good good, but Robert De Niro steals the spotlight. And new comer Charlie Cox is very charming.
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Cinema

O Senhor dos Anéis

March 4, 2004

Aragorn's Coronation by Anke Eissmann

Pérola que escutei outro dia na fila do banco: “Fotografia, edição, direção… isso a gente não iria ganhar nunca. Mas roteiro adaptado tinha que ter ganho. Cidade de Deus é história real, aconteceu mesmo. Não aquela merda de Senhor dos Anéis, que é tudo de mentira”.

Roteiro adaptado não é questão de ser baseado numa história verídica ou não, e sim a qualidade que é feita a adaptação. E eu acho que Senhor dos Anéis: O Retorno do Rei mereceu todos os prêmios.

Boromir's Funeral by Anke Eissmann

Eu terminei de ler tem + ou – mês. O livro é fantástico e muito mais rico que o filme (como quase todas as adaptações feitas para o cinema). Contém muito mais personagens e complexidades. É emocionante, empolgante e triste. É um outro mundo e uma vez que você mergulha pra dentro desse mundo não quer mais voltar.

Éowyn and Faramir by Anke Eissmann

Peter Jackson fez um excelente trabalho e está de parabéns. Claro que tem várias coisas fizeram falta nos filmes… um exemplo é a história entre Éowyn e Faramir (que é um dos melhores personagens do livro e foi mal aproveitado no filme). Enfim… como eu não quero me despedir tão cedo do universo de Tolkien estou lendo agora o Silmarillion.

todas ilustrações por Anke Eissmann

 

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Movies

Lord of the Rings

March 4, 2004

Aragorn's Coronation by Anke Eissmann

A conversation I heard the other day in line at the bank: “… cinematography, editing, direction… that we could never win but we should have won best adapted screenplay. After all, City of God is the true story, it all happened in real life, not that shit Lord of the Rings, which is all lies”.

Adapted screenplay is not a matter of being based on a true or not, but the quality of the adaptation. And I think Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King deserved all the awards it won.

Boromir's Funeral by Anke Eissmann

I finished reading the book, more of less a month ago. The book is fantastic and much richer than the movie (as almost all adaptations made ​​for cinema). It contains more characters and complexities. It’s exciting, thrilling and sad. It’s another world and once you dive into this world you won’t want to return.

Éowyn and Faramir by Anke Eissmann

Peter Jackson did a great job and should be congratulated. Of course there are things missing in the films… one example is the story between Éowyn and Faramir (which is one of the best characters in the book. Anyway… as I do not want to say goodbye so early to Tolkien’s universe I am now reading the Silmarillion.

all illustrations by Anke Eissmann

 

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