Lee Van Cleef in his first role (no lines)

Any doubt High Noon was filmed in Tuolumne County is erased in the very first frame, as we see the speechless gang member (Lee Van Cleef in his very first role) having a smoke on pure TC tombstone rock. The exact location is somewhere on Brooks Ranch, about 12 miles SW of Jamestown. Other locations include Columbia and the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Tuolumne.

High Noon Intro on YouTube

Passion of the Weiss unveiled it’s annual Best Of year end list.

MAGr (Al Mighty & Distant Starr) placed at #50 with their standout cut “Laminated Looseleafs” featuring Blu of the album No News is Good News.  5 O’Clock Shadowboxers came in at #31 with the recently visualized “High Noon”.  And Zilla Rocca contributed write-ups to cuts by M.O.P. and Blakroc featuring Raekwon.

Check the list here.

I’ve never directed a video before.  Let me know what you think!

Filmed and edited by Jimmy Giambrone

Produced by Curly Castro

Co-starring Nico the Beast, Jawnzap7, Curly Castro, and Liz Padova

Directed by Zilla Rocca
Produced by Curly Castro
Filmed and edited by Jimmy Giambrone
Co-starring Nico the Beast, Jawnzap7, and Liz Padova

Taken from the 5 O’Clock Shadowboxers LP The Slow Twilight

When you gonna take a seat, dead queen?

In case you STILL haven’t check the 5 O’Clock Shadowboxers’ debut The Slow Twilight, fear not sleeping hip hop listener!  The good folks at Bloggerhouse have done you a favor and went ahead to list the track “Dead Queens” featuring Nico the Beast among the top 100 songs of the 2009.  Coming in at a cool number 77 (Ray Borque’s number to all 9 of you NHL fans left!), “Dead Qeens” along with the rest of the album is available for full streaming and DLing over at the 5 O’Clock Shadowboxers’ Bandcamp page.

Not to be outdone with just a simple mention of the Shadowboxers track, Dart Adams of Bloggerhouse penned an insightful essay on the Emergence of the Free LP and mentioned The Slow Twilight as the future of what “artists and bloggers are capable of bringing together” and how this means “deep shit” for record labels.

PS The long awaited video for “High Noon” off The Slow Twilight drops THIS WEEK!  It will premiere here at Beat Garden Site as soon as it’s ready!!!!

Usually by this time of the year I am really staring to miss sunlight… the real stuff, not the artificial sunlight that comes 4 to a pack at the local box store. This year we’ve had so much on our plate that the lack of daylight hasn’t hit me. I took this from our front porch looking due south at about 6 minutes past noon… and it hit me, this is high noon. I consoled myself by saying that if the cloud cover wasn’t there it would be brighter. Not a lot, but at this time of year we’ll take what we can get.

The people have spoken and our next screening will be High Noon!  Make arrangements to get your copy by Sunday to join in the fun.

I put together a video for this week’s write-up.  It’s pretty low-rent, but it’s the first time I’ve ever made one, so I’m pretty happy with the first effort.  Hopefully, we can improve on this effort and make the videos a bit more ambitious.  For now, here is High Noon.  The trailer is attached at the end of my portion.  Enjoy!

Artwork by Objektiv One

 It got  a little freaky, didn’t it?

The long awaited video for “High Noon” off The Slow Twilight will be getting edited tomorrow night and released by the end of December.

The Broken Clocks EP will be coming in January and features beats and rhymes from Has-Lo, Nico the Beast, Small Professor, Curly Castro and Elucid.  We might be getting some show dates west of the Mason-Dixon lane in January too (fingers crossed).

Tick tock…

At high noon today I crossed the state line and returned to the Republic of Texas. First thing I did, six miles in, was stop for a chopped beef sandwich, fried okra, and sweet tea.

It’s an easy drive from Little Rock to Dallas, where I am staying the night with my daughter Lydia. Lydia is a volunteer coordinator for the North Texas Food Bank, the largest food bank in Texas and the eighth largest in the nation. She manages a program involving over 17,000 volunteers.

When I arrived she surprised me with a handmade welcome back to Texas sign. Later her friends and some of their parents came by for tacos. They all brought Texas themed gifts, ranging from wine to plastic cowboy hats. Looks like I’m home.

Welcome Back to Texas

Lydia has followed my journey every day. She tells me that she is getting to know the real me. It is an important transition we make, from parent and child, to parent and adult child. There have been moments along the way when I have been concerned that my writing may have peeled away their idealistic view of me before its time. Maybe I shared too much, knowing my children, both of them, were reading. In the end, I decided that the honesty would perhaps create greater understanding of our shared histories.

Hopefully Lydia in particular will better understand her own impulse for adventure.

When she was twelve years old, my daughter, on her own initiative, proposed that she enroll in the People-to-People Student Ambassador Program. This was a major commitment. It involved months of preparation and a group study program prior to embarking on a 21-day trip. To AUSTRALIA! We told her she had to raise half the funds. For several months she read gas meters for a local company, and sold popcorn, to earn money.

It was hard to let her go, but I identified with her longing. It was something we could give her.

It didn’t stop there. She has already traveled widely. While I have been away on my trip, she has been to Georgia and Florida. Tomorrow I will put her on a plane to North Carolina.

Lydia lived in the Austin area when I first moved there. I had this idea that maybe we would live close to each other for years to come. I think that lasted about seven months. Next thing I know she had taken a job in Dallas.

I am thinking there is not much chance I will be able to keep her close. She has already started her journey.

Seven films to watch while you’re laid up with the cold, H1N1, or whatever else gets you down.

NOT recommended viewing. For so many reasons.

Welcome to cold and flu season! Each years untold millions of people get the common cold, the flu, the stomach flu, and a variety of other painful and discomforting illnesses.Many sufferers cope by parking themselves on the couch and in front of the DVD player , creating some prime movie-viewing time.

Watching a favorite movie is pretty much the best way to spend a sick day. You don’t have to move around, you don’t have to think that much about the plot (since it’s your favorite, you’ve seen it before already) and you can pause the film for trips to the bathroom, kitchen, or medicine chest. For those of you who don’t have a “favorite” movie to help get you through the long, queasy recuperation hours, consider these classics. We’ve tried to include a variety of stuff, representing several genres.

Office Space - If you’re not going in to work you owe it to yourself to laugh at American office culture. Mike Judge’s (Idiocracy) comedy, in which Ron Livingston gets hypnotized into not giving a damn about anything his boss or company wants, remains the perfect way to laugh at all the healthy worker drones spending the day at their jobs. Bonus sick day activity: Drawl like office middle manager Bill Lumbergh (Gary Cole) to everyone you speak with, as in: “Hello, pharmacy? I’m gonna need you to go ahead and refill my prescription. Yeah, that’d be great.”

In The Good Old Summertime – A favorite among Judy Garland’s legions of fans, this romantic comedy/musical puts her at professional odds with fellow music shop salesman Van Johnson, even while the two fall in love as pen pals when off the clock. Proudly warm and nostalgic for its soundstage-perfect Victorian Era setting, the film features Garland as irresistable as ever and Johnson well-cast as a suitor so straight-laced he seems almost quaint by modern standards. And if store owner Mr. Oberkugen seems familiar, you probably also saw S. Z. Sakall play Carl, the maitre d’ at Rick’s Cafe Americain, in Casablanca. Bonus sick day activity: Sing along with Garland, especially during the showstopping “I Don’t Care.”

The Dirty Dozen - The epitome of classic Hollywood cinema that doesn’t ask too much of the brain, director Robert Aldrich’s fast-paced adventure stays enthralling right up until the last, disappointing final scene. Still, it’s a hell of a lot of fun to see while you’re watching it. Bonus sick day activity: Devise your own resolution to the Dozen’s raid on the Nazi castle, one that doesn’t uphold the Establishment status quo but instead lets Posey (Clint Walker) and Jefferson (Jim Brown) survive.

High Noon - Speaking of guy films, this high-water mark of the Western genre has everything a good Western should: an iconic good guy (Gary Cooper), a ferocious antagonist (Ian MacDonald) and a whole town up for grabs. Director Fred Zinnermann (From Here To Eternity) films the story in real-time, ratcheting the suspense up even further. Not for nothing, but it’s also probably got the coolest theme song of any Western ever made. Bonus sick day activity: Count off the townspeople running from outlaw Frank Miller (MacDonald) on their big clay feet; come up with your own argument to give the sheriff’s wife (Grace Kelly) that yes, sometimes violence is the answer.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles – Especially topical this time of year, John Hughes’ masterwork tells the hilarious story of an uptight yuppie (Steve Martin, giving probably his best performance) and an uncouth shower curtain ring salesman (John Candy, definitely giving his) stuck with each other while trying to get home for Thanksgiving. The ending is amazingly touching without falling into hokum, a rare feat in most Hollywood films. Bonus sick day activity: Follow Del Griffith’s (Candy) suggestion and play pickup sticks with your butt cheeks; alternately, wash all your pillowcases.

Stripes - Ivan Reitman’s spoof of basic training and army operations works from such an episodic script you can basically watch the film in ten and fifteen minutes doses. Nevertheless, stars Bill Murray and Harold Ramis put in some sublime comic acting, bolstered by a wide ensemble cast including Candy, Judge Reinhold, Sean Young, Warren Oates and John Larroquette. Fans of the Canadian series SCTV should look for cameos by alumni Dave “Doug McKenzie” Thomas and Joe “Count Floyd” Flaherty. Bonus sick day activity: Teach yourself to march and drill the John Winger (Murray) way, by shouting Manfred Mann songs and making goofy faces.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy – Probably best if you’re going to be laid up all weekend (or for several days, anyway) the monumental LOTR saga has everything you could want from a film series – adventure, intrigue, romance, a metric ton of action – while still remaining approachable and reasonably episodic. The plotlines start to drag a bit at times, and director Peter Jackson’s (King Kong) sense of restraint gets out from under him in the third chapter. Nevertheless, taken as a whole the trilogy delivers hours and hours of riveting viewing, especially the epic Battle of Helm’s Deep. Bonus sick day activity: Take a shot of Vitamin C every time Frodo (Elijah Wood) or Legolas (Orlando Bloom) stare at something in close-up. You’ll be up and moving around in no time.

We’ll be back later this week. Take it easy and we hope you feel better.

- Michael Kabel
:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

by Andrea Burke

November 1- 7:

1. The Men Who Stare at Goats.  This movie looks hilarious to me. I can’t really explain why, part of it may be that I love George Clooney and Ewan McGregor

2. Strict Joy- The Swell Season. If you have seen the excellent movie Once, you know how awesome this pair is. They released a new album last week! Go buy it!

3. Ricky Gervais, the man who created The Office, Extras, and wrote/directed and starred in The Invention of Lying, will be on David Letterman Friday.

Tutto succede in un’ora e trenta di logorante attesa. Un matrimonio, quattro funerali, vecchie storie con prostitute che vengono a galla, un triangolo amoroso, una vendetta consumata dopo cinque anni, il tradimento di una vile comunità.

Mezzogiono di fuoco (1952) è la vita condensata in un’ora e trenta. Un’ora e trenta logorante e non di sfrenata avventura come il genere western ci ha da sempre abituato. Un’ora e trenta di attesa, di qualcosa che dovrà accadere, sempre più imminente e allo stesso tempo inarrivabile.

Il film di Fred Zinnemann lascia da parte il mito della fondazione americana, abbandonando così ogni immagine della frontiera. Non ci sono più terre promesse da conquistare, non ci sono più gli indiani cattivi da distruggere. C’è solo una sorta di desolazione, un cumulo di polvere all’interno di quel giardino che si è creato. Emerge così un rammarico, un senso di insoddisfazione per ciò che si è creato. In fondo, quello che sembra chiedersi lo sceriffo Will Kane (Gary Cooper) sembra proprio questo: ne è valsa la pena lottare per aiutare questa comunità se in cambio ne si ottiene solo diffidenza?

Sono gli anni della guerra fredda, la caccia alle streghe è già cominciata e lo sceneggiatore del film Carl Foreman stava vivendo lo stesso clima di sospetto per la sua vicinanza al comunismo. E come in America non si sparava al nemico, lo si escludeva, lo si teneva da parte per paura di essere invischiati o meglio non si collaborava con gli amici per paura, per timore o per sospetto.

Lo sceriffo Will Kane è comunque il capostipite dei personaggi che animeranno il futuro western crepuscolare. Personaggio dubbioso e indeciso, un eroe accidentale, insicuro delle proprie capacità e allo stesso tempo un personaggio crepuscolare,  non più giovane e nostalgico dei tempi andati, delle avventure passate.  Così come altrettanto forte resta l’immagine di questa giovane sposa che con freddezza uccide un uomo alle spalle perdendo la sua purezza non attraverso l’atto sessuale ma attraverso un omicidio a sangue freddo.

Capolavoro.

]]> http://lucianogalasso.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/the-magnificent-seven-continues-now-with-0-of-the-magnificent-seven/ Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:48:44 +0000 Luciano Galasso http://lucianogalasso.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/the-magnificent-seven-continues-now-with-0-of-the-magnificent-seven/

Well.

Yesterday I began a list of my personal favorite Westerns of all time. Today, I return to finish the job – once and for all.

First, though, a quick recap. Here’s the first four entries on the list, numbered seven to four:

7. Young Guns.

The Brat Pack takes on the legend of Billy the Kid. Emilio Estevez is somehow believable as a murdering sociopath. Kiefer Sutherland continues to be awesome.

6. Silverado.

Kevin Kline and Kevin Costner team up to stop corrupt Brian Dennehy and creepy Jeff Goldblum.

Awesome.

5. Tombstone.

Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer steamroll through some of the most cringe-worthy moments in film history, seemingly through sheer force of awesomeness alone. Michael Biehn is also on hand, once again forcing us all to collectively ask: “What the hell ever happened to Michael Biehn?”

4. Unforgiven.

Clint Eastwood frowns and scowls his way towards redemption and a scheming Gene Hackman, with Morgan Freeman caught somewhere in the middle. Saul Rubinek and Richard Harris are also there for some reason.

And now…THE FINAL THREE.

Three: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. (2007)

This is the newest entry on the list, so I’m not sure if it’s properly reached “classic” status yet.

But give it time, friends – it will.

“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” was quite possibly my favorite movie of 2007. Very few people saw it. Even less seemed to like it. But I maintain that it is one of the most beautifully epic and gorgeously shot films I have ever witnessed. The movie is true artwork – every detail is carefully crafted for maximum impact. From the cinematography, to the sparse dialogue, to the acting, to the score by indie hero Nick Cave, everything is note perfect.

It’s certainly not a feel good movie, like some other, younger, gunnier films, but that’s okay. It’s not meant to be. While Jesse James certainly had his boyish fun side, his movie isn’t about him. It’s one of the few Jesse James movies out there, I’m sure, that he isn’t the main focus of.

This movie is about Robert Ford.

It’s about Ford, that “dirty little coward, who shot Mr. Howard,” and his tumultuous, sometimes bizarre relationship with James. Ford idolized James, even loved him – but not in a weird way. Just in the way that he wanted to be Jesse James.

Which, I guess is a little weird.

(But, c’mon…who wouldn’t want to be Jesse James?!?)

Casey Affleck plays Ford as a man who seems to be constantly on the verge of a complete meltdown. He has no real personality, no identity. In his mind’s eye, he IS James, or at the very least, James’ partner in crime. Unfortunately, Jesse James doesn’t really see it that way.

Now, I usually hear the same two complaints about this movie. For one, it’s too long. Well, deal with it. This is a grown-up movie for grown-ups. If you can’t sit and watch a movie for three hours without squirming or getting fussy, than too bad. This movie’s not for you. It’s long, yes, but that only adds to the build up. And I’ve never found it slow, either. Leisurely, sure. It takes it’s time to revel in the world it’s created, and the characters who inhabit it. And what interesting characters they are.

The second complaint is that, like “Titanic”, you already know the ending. All right, sure. It’s in the damn title, for Christ’s sake. But again, the movie isn’t about the murder of James…it’s about the journey leading up to the assassination. It wants to examine this frustrating relationship between two vastly different men, one an idol, the other the worshiper, that culminates in murder. The interesting part isn’t that Robert Ford shot Jesse James in the back of the head. The interesting part is why Robert Ford shot Jesse James in the back of the head. And in the movie, when James realizes his defeat, and gives up to dust off that picture, it’s beautiful, sad and heartbreaking – for both men.

Give it another look. The acting is superb all around, with Affleck at the head of the pack, and excellent supporting performances from Pitt and the always dependable Sam Rockwell. And, in a transparent attempt to make me love this movie even more, the lovely Zooey Deschanel also shows up, briefly, near the end.

So it’s also got that going for it. Which is nice.

Two: The Searchers. (1956)

Racism, family, and John Wayne all collide in this epic masterpiece by that master of epic masterpieces, John Ford.

Wayne, a staple of Westerns, stars as Ethan Edwards, a man searching for his lost nieces after they are abducted by Native Americans. Edwards, racist against the Natives even before they destroy his family, sets out to find the girls at any cost.

That cost, as we soon find out, is exorbitantly higher than the audience may initially think; Ethan’s hatred for the Comanche is so severe, that he would rather see his nieces dead then in Native hands. If he can’t save them from death, than at least he can try to save them from the tribe.

The film attempts to examine racism in the Old West, showcasing Ethan’s hatred for the “red man” against the Comanche chief’s racism against the “white man”. Both are extreme in their racism to the point of madness – the chief, Scar, will continue to kill and scalp white men, with no end in sight, in retaliation for his two son’s murders, and Ethan will willfully murder his own niece, rather than see her marry a Comanche.

It’s a dark, dense tale, that is uncommon even now – let alone in the 1950’s, when it was a given that all cowboys were good, all Indians savages.

Wayne is amazing as Edwards. Defiant, aggressive and stubborn, his character grows throughout the film, but only really finds redemption after being pushed to the brink – he only truly becomes human after giving up his own humanity.

It’s a great film – a social message beautifully shot and well acted. Certainly one of Ford’s best, which means it truly must stand tall in the genre. Highly recommended, this is one of the best in the genre.

One: High Noon. (1952)

The only thing more epically, badassingly awesome than the movie “High Noon,” is Gary Cooper, who stars in the movie “High Noon.”

This is number one is right here, folks. And it is awesome.

“High Noon” is a ridiculously awesome movie with a ridiculously awesome concept. Cooper plays Will Kane, the sheriff of a small town, now happily married and planning to retire. Then some dude Kane put away years ago vows revenge on Kane, heads back into town, grabs himself a posse, and wages war on our intrepid lawman.

No problem, right? Just round up some deputies, take these dudes by force, scrub up your badge for the next guy, and high-tail it outta town on the next stagecoach for a weekend honeymoon retreat with your wife at some five-star saloon or something.

WRONG.

The townspeople may admire Kane, but they sure as hell don’t want to step into his shoes. Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald) is one badass dude, and they want nothing to do with him. They suggest the same to Kane. Leave town. Forget Miller. Move on.

But Kane knows better. You deal with bullies by facing them down, not running away. Otherwise, they will hunt you down and haunt you for the rest of your life. So he stays in town. He pins that badge on his vest, and he throws down against Frank Miller and his gang, with no help from anyone but himself. Will Kane vs. THE WORLD. And in REAL TIME.

It’s a great movie that showcases the struggles of doing the right thing vs. doing the easy thing. It presents this argument mostly through dialogue, and characters action prior to the finale – and, in fact, the finale is the only place where any violence or action at all take place. Not your typical Western – especially Back In The Day.

Check it out to find out why I consider it to be the best Western ever made (personally speaking, of course.)

And you’ll also find out why Gary Cooper’s Will Kane is the greatest Western hero of all time.

Well.

That is the list as I see it. I’m sure there will be future lists down the road, but for now…I’m all listed out.

Oh, what the hell. Here’s the honorable mentions list. Check these out too, for a better representation of the genre as a whole:

The Magnificent Seven. (1960)

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. (1969)

Shane.(1953)

Rio Bravo. (1959)

The Wild Bunch. (1969)

Stagecoach. (1939)

Dances with Wolves. (1990)

And yes. I am fully aware that EVERY movie on THIS list is better than “Young Guns.”

REGULATORS!

MOUNT UP!

Uma síntese verdadeira e pungente sobre a solidão. Solidão esta representada pela percepção de que aqueles que te ajudaram a cinco anos podem simplesmente mudar de idéia quando fantasmas do passado resolvem assombrar a mesma cidade que você ajudou a apaziguar. Não somente mudar de idéia, mas também lhe aconselharem a ir embora, a salvar a sua pele antes que seja tarde demais (ou, na verdade, salvar a pele deles).

Entretanto, contrariando a todos, ele resolve ficar. Muitos de vocês podem pensar que ele tomou essa decisão pelo fato dele estar preocupado com o destino daquela cidade. Ou porque ele ainda se sente como o xerife. Ou por conta de uma lembrança antiga. Ou por todas essas razões juntas. E muitos da cidade chegaram a pensar nisso inicialmente. Mas há algo mais que sintetiza essa decisão.

Poderia dissertar muito mais sobre essa maravilha do western, contada quase que em tempo real, que magnifica o conceito de “homem solitário”, não através de palavras, tiros, brigas, mas através pura e simplesmente da imagem e do silêncio, além da inexorável sensação de passagem de tempo descrita anteriormente, intensificada ainda mais pelos vários relógios que são mostrados no decorrer dos seus enxutos e eficientes 85 minutos, além da interpretação mais-do-que-magistral de Gary Cooper, contido, transmitindo todas as emoções em gestos mínimos (como, aliás, todo o filme; especialmente nos maravilhosos 20 minutos finais).

4/4

Adney Silva

ou: Matar ou Morrer (Fred Zinnemann, 1952) – Marcelo Dillenburg – 3/4

The Strong Hand of Love

Down peppers the rain from a clear blue sky
Down trickles a tear on a youthful face
Feeling in haste and wondering why
Up struggles the sun from a wounded night
Out venture our hearts from their silent shrouds
Trying to ignite but wondering how

We can laugh and we can cry
And never see the strong hand of love hidden in the shadows
We can dance and we can sigh
And never see the strong hand of love hidden in the shadows

Young dreamers explode like popped balloons
Some kind of emotional rodeo
Learning too slow and acting too soon
Time marches away like a lost platoon
We gracefully age as we feel the weight
Of loving too late and leaving too soon

We can laugh and we can cry
And never see the strong hand of love hidden in the shadows
We can dance and we can sigh
And never see the strong hand of love hidden in the shadows

Written by Mark Heard © 1990 Ideola Music

I will rise from my bed with a question again
As I work to inherit the restless wind
The view from my window is cold and obscene
I want to touch what my eyes haven’t seen

But they have packaged our virtue in cellulose dreams
And sold us the remnants ’til our pockets are clean
Til our hopes fall ’round our feet
Like the dust and dead leaves
And weend up looking like what we believe

We are soot-covered urchins running wild and unshod
We will always be remembered as the orphans of God
They will dig up these ruins and make flutes of our bones
And blow a hymn to the memory of the orphans of God

Like bees in a bottle we are flying at fate
Beating our wings against the walls of this place
Unaware that the struggle is the blood of the proof
In choosing to believe the unbelievable truth

But they have captured our siblings and rendered them mute
They’ve disputed our lineage and poisoned our roots
We have bought from the brokers who have broken their oaths
And we’re out on the streets with a lump in our throats

We are soot-covered urchins running wild and unshod
We will always be remembered as the orphans of God
They will dig up these ruins
And make flutes of our bones
And blow a hymn to the memory of the orphans of God

Mark Heard.

From: High Noon (listen!)

*)(**)(**)(*

Do you see, do you see, all the people sinking down,

Don’t you care, don’t you care, are you gonna let them drown,

How can you be so numb, not to care if they come,

You close your eyes and pretend the job’s done.

Oh Bless me Lord, bless me Lord, you know it’s all I ever hear,

No one aches, no one hurts, no one even sheds one tear,

But He cries, He weeps, He bleeds, and He cares for your needs,

And you just lay back and keep soaking it in, oh, can’t you see it’s such sin?

Cause He brings people to your door,

And you turn them away, as you smile and say,

God bless you, be at peace, and all Heaven just weeps,

Cause Jesus came to your door, you’ve left Him out on the streets.

Open up, open up, and give yourself away,

You’ve seen the need, you hear the cry, so how can you delay,

God’s calling and you’re the one, but like Jonah you run,

He’s told you to speak, but you keep holding it in,

Oh, can’t you see it’s such sin?

The world is sleeping in the dark,

That the church can’t fight, cause it’s asleep in the light,

How can you be so dead, when you’ve been so well fed,

Jesus rose from the grave, and you, you can’t even get out of bed,

Oh, Jesus rose from the dead, come on, get out of your bed.

How can you be so numb, not to care if they come,

You close your eyes and pretend the job’s done,

You close your eyes and pretend the job’s done,

Don’t close your eyes, don’t pretend the job’s done.

Come away, come away, come away with Me, My love,

Come away, from this mess, come away with Me, My love.

Keith Green.

*)(**)(**)(*

Some say he was an outlaw, that he roamed across the land,

With a band of unschooled ruffians and few old fishermen,

No one knew just where he came from, or exactly what he’d done,

But they said it must be something bad that kept him on the run.

Some say he was a poet, that he’d stand upon the hill

That his voice could calm an angry crowd and make the waves stand still,

That he spoke in many parables that few could understand,

But the people sat for hours just to listen to this man.

Some say a politician who spoke of being free,

He was followed by the masses on the shores of Galilee,

He spoke out against corruption and he bowed to no decree,

And they feared his strength and power so they nailed him to a tree.

Some say he was a sorcerer, a man of mystery,

He could walk upon the water, he could make a blind man see,

That he conjured wine at weddings and did tricks with fish and bread,

That he talked of being born again and raised people from the dead.

Some say he was the Son of God, a man above all men,

That he came to be a servant and to set us free from sin,

And that’s who I believe he is cause that’s what I believe,

And I think we should get ready cause it’s time for us to leave.

Larry Norman

David Adams Richards’s God Is. reads like a series of concentric circles. The broad theme of the book is stated in the subtitle: “My Search for Faith in a Secular World.” However, Richards constructs this theme by pondering love and violence, liberty and power, sincerity and con games. This following section, highlighting these themes in the classic film High Noon (one of my favourites), captures the crux of this scattered yet worthwhile book.

There is a courageous journey as well in the movie High Noon, with Gary Cooper as sheriff who just married that very day, Amy—Grace Kelly—a Quaker woman opposed to violence. These, of course, are old morality plays—but they are plays that must be observed. The sheriff has put a man away, kept the town safe from a man who is now out and, along with his brother and two cronies, are coming to exact revenge. (These people, like the mob I referenced, never act alone.) No one stands up for Cooper or with him. The town turns coward—and some profess their indifference—by hiding and drinking in the tavern, or profess their moral superiority by going to church and praying. (This tavern and church are shown here to be one and the same.) It is interesting how all of these townspeople now turn on the sheriff and blame him, not only for his own difficulty but for the position he has put them in. The tavern and the church become the twin pillars of a false morality in the witnessing of one man’s agony.

Cooper has to fight the four men alone, and he does—with Amy finally coming to his aid and saving his life.

Nothing shows better the idea of a pretension toward goodness enabling evil. For the surface good, the surface morality is neither.

Therefore what counts must finally be recognized, and it will be sooner or later. Maybe not within the confines of a two-hour movie, or a ten-page story, but someday and for all time. It will also be known what is actual violence and what is not. Those in church were far more violent than Gary Cooper’s character that day. (pages 125-126)

come check out uHAPS’ coverage of Rolling Rock Bloodshot Records at High Noon Saloon from this past Saturday (8-22-09) in Madison, WI!:

http://madison.uhaps.com/Event.aspx?id=5336

One of those weird coincedences that crop up now and again. I was talking about this film with PJOwens over on the Live for Films Forum just the other day.

Variety have the news that Warner Bros. and Hollywood Gang Prods. have got Michael Davis (Shoot ‘em Up) to direct Outland, a remake of the 1981 Sean Connery sci-fier. That was of course an update of the classic Western High Noon.

The drama revolves around a police marshal stationed at a remote mining colony on Jupiter’s moon Io, where he uncovers a murderous conspiracy threatening the entire Outland with collapse.

The new version will take place in an orbiting city around the moon, where a cop uncovers a conspiracy endangering the entire city. With a week before his retirement back to Earth, he has to choose between walking away with his wife, or taking on an army with his ex-partner and wife’s former boyfriend.

“We loved the original sci-fi film with Sean Connery,” Nunnari said. “At its core, ‘Outland’ is a version of ‘High Noon’ in outer space, as two courageous people take a stand against a gang of ruthless conspirators at the highest level.”

Davis, who wrote as well as directed the Clive Owen action film “Shoot ‘Em Up,” said, “We’re staying true to the thematic heart of ‘Outland’ while expanding the space frontier concept.”

I really enjoyed both High Noon and Outland , but I think a remake of it will be most welcome. It is a classic story and with good action sequences it could be one to watch.

Do you want to see a remake of it? Who should play the main character?

New DVD’s that will be added to our shelves on Tuesday August 18th.

Fast and Furious
Dragonball Evolution
Miss March
An American Affair
Angel of Death
Bart Got a Room
Green Lantern
Fifth Commandment
Juncture
Necessary Evil
• Hanna Montana, the Movie
• Last House on the Left
• Labor Pains
• Mutant Chronicles
• Streets of Blood
• High Noon
• Midnight Bayou
• Northern Lights
• Tribute
• Tyson
• Bridge to Nowhere
• Bundle
• Gradulation
• Lost Stallions: The Journey Home
• Love Comes Lately
• Pete’s Dragon
• Poker House
• Might Machines’s Ships Ahoy
• Dirty Sexy Money: Season 2
• Gossip Girl: Season 2

For more information on these movies such as ratings, synopsis, reviews, and video trailers click on the movie title above. This will open the NewThisWeek.ca website.

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