Miles Maeda – A Tourist’s Guide to the Realization of Your Own Buddha Nature (2000)
Posted on October 13, 2006
Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
DJ Miles Maeda puts together a solid mix of Panhandle Records artists in this six-year-old set. Despite the fluffy name, this set is full of jazzy chords, funky basslines, and laid-back house music. Inland Knights, Lance Desardi, Tony Senghore, Undercover Agency, Ra Soul, and others are featured.
Grade: B.
AllMusic: A Tourist’s Guide to the Realization of Your Own Buddha Nature.
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Posted on September 26, 2006
Filed Under Movies | Leave a Comment
Matt Damon stars in this creepy thriller about a guy who falls in love with another man’s life. Some of the moments in this study of identity are difficult to watch. Set throughout Italy, this drama is well-scripted, perfectly cast, and has a beautiful look that evokes the 1950s.
Grade: B.
IMDB: The Talented Mr. Ripley.
Cinderella Man (2005)
Posted on September 22, 2006
Filed Under Movies | Leave a Comment
Russell Crowe stars as James J. Braddock alongside Paul Giamatti (in an Oscar-nominated supporting role as Braddock’s trainer) in this inspiring based-on-a-true-story biopic. The boxing scenes are gritty and believable, with action that will make you jump out of your chair and cheer out loud.
Grade: A.
IMDB: Cinderella Man.
Nowhere in Africa (2001)
Posted on September 21, 2006
Filed Under Movies | Leave a Comment
This stunning Oscar-winning German film chronicles a Jewish family’s escape from the Nazis to a farm in Kenya, their struggles to understand and accept the native culture, and the aftermath of the war. Beautifully-scripted and believably acted, the inspiring story brought powerful emotionality and tough-to-watch moments.
Grade: B+.
IMDB: Nirgendwo in Afrika.
Ali Ryerson – Blue Flute (1991)
Posted on September 21, 2006
Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
Ali Ryerson, flute, jumps into her debut with an astonishing rhythm section with gusto. Leaving no room to question her jazz chops, she holds her own with a group that includes Red Rodney and Kenny Barron. I Fall in Love Too Easily, Waltz for Harry, and Asterie especially stand out.
Grade: A+.
AllMusic: Blue Flute.
Roger Sanchez – Come With Me (2006)
Posted on September 21, 2006
Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
Roger Sanchez delivers a delicious set of eleven original tracks on this surprising CD. House music is refreshed with poignant and sometimes humorous song lyrics. The production is sharp and very clean. The vocal work is beautiful, the composition is rich and funky, and the tracks flow together very well.
Grade: A.
AllMusic: Come With Me.
Roni Size & Reprazent – New Forms (1997)
Posted on September 19, 2006
Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
The definitive set of Drum and Bass, this magnificent opus, which spans two CDs, brings jazzy horn solos, astonishing acoustic bass riffs, ethereal vocals, and punchy breakbeats together. Roni Size and crew deliver a seminal work of art—a goliath set of tracks that delivers from the very first beat.
Grade: A.
AllMusic: New Forms.
Bare Essentials, Vol. 1 (2000)
Posted on September 19, 2006
Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
This unmixed compilation of Naked Music tracks features a gorgeous set of soulful deep house. Blue Six, Petalpusher, Summerland, and others contribute lush reflective jazzy grooves with laid-back vocals. Each of the tracks fits well with the others. This compilation is a great introduction to the deep house sound.
Grade: B.
AllMusic: Bare Essentials, Vol. 1.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
Posted on September 17, 2006
Filed Under Movies | Leave a Comment
A big-screen version of the first of C. S. Lewis’ famous seven-part children’s fantasy, this picture is well-scripted, solidly acted, and features a gaggle of computer-generated animals that aren’t terribly over the top. The film takes small liberties with the source material, but delivers the goods.
Grade: B.
IMDB: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
Capote (2005)
Posted on September 16, 2006
Filed Under Movies | 1 Comment
Philip Seymour Hoffman shines as Truman Capote in this examination of the process of researching and writing his masterpiece, In Cold Blood. The acting performances were fantastic, the screenplay was compelling, and the look of the film brought the story alive. While slow-paced, the film was entertaining and interesting.
Grade: A-.
IMDB: Capote.
« go back — keep looking »