MTV: The Roots Pre-Grammy Jam

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WEST HOLLYWOOD — The Roots, the Roots, the Roots were on fire as they blasted through back-to-back classics, covers and mash-ups at their sixth annual Pre-Grammy Jam Session at Hollywood's Key Club. The Philadelphia crew was clearly having a blast as friends like John Legend, Mos Def and ex-keyboardist Scott Storch joined them onstage throughout a night that lasted well past 2 a.m. ... TO READ THE REST OF MY REPORT, CLICK HERE.

Movie Review: "The Book of Eli"

I participated in the on-air review of "The Book of Eli" for the Rotten Tomatoes Show on Current. The long-form / written version of my review appears below.

THE BOOK OF ELI
Directed By: Albert & Alan Hughes
Starring: Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis
2 Stars

I like Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mad Max, crusty wandering sages, martial arts, machetes, chainsaws, cannibals, dystopian near-futures, westerns, the Hughes brothers and the Bible.

But I didn't like "The Book of Eli."

"The Book of Eli" is well-intentioned, made by smart people and starring an incredible cast. So what went wrong? Well, for starters, the moralizing is beyond heavy handed as it patronizingly slaps the audience upside the head.

There's a moment in the film where the aforementioned crusty wandering sage, played with stoic authority (despite some of the ham-fisted cliches he's forced to spit out) by Denzel, is distracted on his seemingly never-ending slow-motion walk West (just "West," thank you) by an attempted rape and robbery in progress.

At this point, we've already seen him kill a cat and eat it. We've seen plenty of the burned out cars and broken buildings that are oh-so-familiar from "The Road Warrior" (yes!) through "Terminator Salvation" (blah). We know he's walking, carrying something precious (the words printed on my ticket stub sorta let me know that, too). And yet, the writer (Gary Whitta) and directors (Albert and Alan Hughes) feel the need have Denzel say, OUT LOUD, something like, "Don't get involved. Stay on the path! STAY ON THE PATH!"

He might as well break the fourth wall and just look at the camera and say, "Here's my character's dilemma right now! In case you're wondering what I'm thinking!" Even a voiceover would be less insulting, or better yet, an animated comic book style thought bubble could've appeared over his head.

Spoiler alert: Denzel is Eli and his Book is the Bible; a mystery built up in the trailers that is unraveled quickly on the screen. The preachiness plays out in exactly the same fashion. People had too much. The Bible might have been the reason for the great calamity, but it might also be the salvation of humankind or -- and here's where Oldman's bad guy comes in -- a great weapon of control. We know Oldman is the bad guy because the first time we see him, the camera lingers on the book he's reading about Mussolini before panning to his face. See what I mean?

Couple that with some utterly unbelievable factors: Mila Kunis, stepdaughter to the Oldman character who learns how to say Grace at the dinner table from Washington and promptly decides to abandon her mother and somewhat safe haven to follow him on his journey despite having just watched him massacre a bunch of goons in a bar with a knife that would make Crocodile Dundee blush, somehow manages to have unblemished skin, white teeth and an incredible hairdo in a world where people kill each other over water and KFC wet-naps. The moment her gorgeous face appears on screen asks more of the audience than the redonkulous ret-con plot twist at the end.

There are a few things worth admiring in The Book Of Eli: most of the acting (Washington and Oldman's delivery add a lot here, despite the best efforts of Kunis' radiance and blink-and-you'll-miss him Malcolm McDowell's wig) and much of the Hughes directing. For example, they refuse to pander to the lazy quick cutting action style. The first time we see Denzel fight, he dispatches a bunch of murderous nomads in one long, gorgeous, silhouetted shot.

Tom Waits (!) has a pretty cool little part as something of a post-apocalyptic pawn shop owner. And as a Christian, I'm all for creative takes on spreading the Christian or really any sort of positive spiritual message through art.

But "The Book Of Eli," even moreso than the directing duo's underappreciated but nevertheless flawed "From Hell," fails to deliver on the restless promise of "Menace II Society." Nothing feels urgent, meaningful or thought-provoking (unless retroactively trying to reconcile earlier scenes with the third act's big reveal counts). And it's a shame that even a movie with as many tastefully done, artful notions as this one still thinks audiences are too stupid to know what's going on.

Movie Review: "The White Ribbon"

I participated in the on-air review of "The White Ribbon" for the Rotten Tomatoes Show on Current. The long-form / written version of my review appears below.

THE WHITE RIBBON
Directed By: Michael Haneke
Starring: Christian Friedel, Leonie Benesce, Burghart Klaußner
2.5 Stars

Polarizing German writer / director Michael Haneke is both loved and hated and "The White Ribbon" presents a strong case for both positions. I'm able to summon reasons to see this movie, but they are overwhelmed by my overall unhappiness with it. Haneke hates humanity more than most black metal bands hate humanity. His movies are filled with contempt for the corrupt nature of the human spirit and a cynical, simplistic view of how and why things happen. Set just before the start of World War I in a small German village, "The White Ribbon" is no exception.

"Das weisse Band" has racked up awards around the globe and it must be for the gorgeous black and white cinematography of Christian Berger because there's little else here to recommend. Haneke dredges up issues of neglect, indifference, class, religious fundamentalism, adultery, abuse both psychological and physical and even incest under the pretense of building several mysteries throughout the movie that are in fact never solved. I'm not saying every movie should wrap its plot threads into a nice tidy bow at the end, or that every offensive act be punished. But I left "The White Ribbon" feeling like I had just been punched in the stomach for two and a half hours by a cloaked figure in a mask and gloves without any explanation beyond, "Well, people are awful, what do you expect?" And maybe that was the point, but I firmly disagree with this pessimistic (and simplistic) view.

Who are we watching here? There's a Baron, a teacher, a doctor, a pastor, some fathers, some wives, a bunch of creepy "Children of the Corn" type kids. I'm describing them this way because that's all the movie really offers. These are archetypes, not people, and I found them hard to care about beyond basic human decency - which, if you'll remember, Haneke doesn't seem to believe exists. A lot of bad things are happening to a lot of people, most or some of which may or may not be the work of the kids who always seem to be congregating together suspiciously.

The lack of background music makes for an even more stark environment than the setting or the crisp black and white. Sure, not every movie is "The Godfather," but I found myself actively contemplating how important a score can be when building suspense or drama after I realized the only music in this movie was being made by the characters in whatever scene (a choir singing, a kid playing a flute, a woman playing piano, etc.). It's numbing.

The movie asks a lot of the audience: stare at this closed door for a while. Listen to this guy tell his mistress how worthless she is in the worst detail you can possibly imagine. Haneke has constructed a movie more violent than the last "Saw" picture while spilling barely an ounce of blood. Most of the physical mayhem takes place off screen. It's the emotional, verbal and situational trauma that turns your stomach, forcing you to wriggle in your seat.

As a moviegoer, you try to solve the mystery. As a human being, you try to care about these people. But "The White Ribbon" never solves any of its mysteries and Haneke clearly doesn't care about the characters. Or people.

"The White Ribbon" may be worth seeing to contemplate what Haneke is trying to get across, but I'd personally rather watch something with less blunt force, like the original "Halloween" or "A Nightmare on Elm Street."

AP: The Devil Wears Prada Cover Story

Check out my latest cover story for Alternative Press. I spent a few days on the road with The Devil Wears Prada for this piece. My first cover story for AP was on Dashboard Confessional in 2001. I wrote a second Dashboard cover for them a few years later, as well as cover stories on AFI, Coheed & Cambria and the Oral History of the Vans Warped Tour. I've also contributed to covers on Taste Of Chaos & more. What can I say? I like cover stories.