My Udo My Udo What Have Ye Done

JA from MNPP here. Have you read this phenomenally odd and delightful interview with the actor Udo Kier at The AV Club? Odd and delightful are the two words I'd always use whenever mentioning Mr. Kier, but he really brings it this time around.

Over at MNPP  I picked out my fifteen favorite quotes from the interview, but I'm so oddly delighted in this chat's wake I've got to just keep on thinking about Udo, and what better way to do that then to mercilessly pick apart the work he's done over the years with a completely frivolous list. He's worked so much in such a vast array of projects that there are dozens of his performances that I've missed (I don't know how this is possible but it appears I've never seen any of the films he's done with Fassbinder, for example), but out of the many I have seen here are my five favorite performances of his.

5 Favorites



Lee Meyers, My Son My Son What Have Ye Done - I don't think it's often that Udo gets picked to play a straight man to somebody else's nuttery, but when stacked up against a way out there Michael Shannon it's not only possible, it's enthralling.

NSFW image after the jump





Hans, My Own Private Idaho - I think he sums it up best: "Amazing to have sex with Keanu Reeves and River Phoenix!"

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Count Dracula, Andy Warhol's Dracula - It's hard choosing between his Dracula and his Dr. Frankenstein in the previous year's (superior) Andy Warhol's Frankenstein, but his sickly Drac casts an enfeebledly hypnotic spell I can't quite shake.


Aage Krüger / Little Brother, The Kingdom - You haven't truly lived until you've seen Udo's face emerge from the vital space of a birthing mother.

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Franz Hess, Grindhouse's fake trailer for "Werewolf Women of the SS" - Sure I could've picked something from his other classier works, like all the stuff he's done with Von Trier (he's Lars' most commonly used actor, ya know), but I think this one about sums it all up in a nice tight insane bow.

Runner-up: He played a character named "Wolfgang Herzog" on an episode of Nash Bridges. I haven't seen it, I don't need to see it, without knowing it demands a place upon this list.
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Inglorious Slacker: The Life and Times of Quentin Tarantino

By know you've probably heard that Quentin Tarantino has finished writing Inglorious Bastards, his WW II epic and that he's decided to make it two films, a la Kill Bill. Setting aside for a moment that it might not be a good idea to make every movie longer than it was originally intended to be (which happened with both Kill Bill and Death Proof) and ignore the question that brings up about his self-editing ability, let's talk about Tarantino's blessed career. Anne Thompson writes

Tarantino is one of most fortunate writer-directors in Hollywood. While other filmmakers white-knuckle their way from project to project, hoping to finance their fantasies and get them up on screen just the way they want them--which never happens--Tarantino can count on long-time mentor/patron Harvey Weinstein to be there for him. As soon as the director is ready, he gets a greenlight, and can move forward into production.

I take a different tack here. Isn't the struggle part of art? I love Tarantino's filmography. Every film (save Death Proof by my estimation) has been a gem. But has the coddling made him lazy? Tarantino gets a green light whenever he wants one and yet in 16 years in the business he has only made 6 features --5 if you count Kill Bill as a single film since that's what it was when he was making it -- Half of those films were in his first five years when he was establishing the reputation he still enjoys as an artist and showman. Once you add in the time it will take to actually get around to making and releasing Bastards (I'm guessing 2012 rather than the intended 2010) the lack of productivity will seem even more pronounced.

Tarantino's filmography from 1998 to 2008. That's it.

In the past 11 years he's only delivered Kill Bill and Death Proof. I'm not sure the ease with financing is helping. If he had to struggle a little more, would there be a fire lit under him? Would self editing be a honed survival skill? Would "Director" be the first job description to show up on IMDB instead of "Actor" Yes, he's acted far more often than directed. [shudder]

For comparison and conversation's sake in roughly their first 16 years as feature filmmakers these auteurs made

• Steven Soderbergh. 15 features (+ a television series)
  
• Clint Eastwood. 12 features
• Pedro Almodóvar. 11 features
• Woody Allen. 11 features
• Steven Spielberg. 11 features (+ a television series)
  
• Ang Lee. 10 features
  
• Ridley Scott. 8 features
• Peter Jackson. 8 features
  
• Wong Kar Wai. 8 features
• David Lynch. 6 features (+ a television series)
  
• Todd Haynes. 4 features
• Terence Malick. 2 features
  

Different strokes and all that but come on QT. Work faster, dammit!
*

"I Am the Queen Mother Judd!"

The title shout of this post refers not to a country squabble --Naomi given Wynonna the what's what -- but to Ashley Judd letting loose in Bug. Pay attention.

It's DVD Tuesday...

I've been neglecting the DVD feature on this blog what with my general malaise (geez louise ~ tough year) and all the festival-festiveness so rather than detail each new disc coming out today I offer this simple guide of 11 (why not?) recent DVD releases -- stuff you and I both oughta rewatch / catch up with /discuss in the comments, else we be squished beneath the toes of that ever sprinting popculture beast

(in alpha order)

Away From Her -Sarah Polley's exquisite tale of an everlasting marriage and alzheimers will make my top ten list this year. I love its cool palette, wintry setting, and tearjerking performances which somehow free of cheap sentiment yet warm all the same. My nightmare: Julie Christie gets passed over for a Best Actress nomination this year. It could happen. It better not.

Black Book -Since this was skipped by the foreign language committee during last year's Oscar race, it's technically eligible for Oscar consideration in other categories this year (the year of its US release). Not that anyone will notice. But some people think it's awesome and that the lead actress is the shit.

The Boss of it All -Lars Von Trier does comedy (?) Have you seen it?

Brothers and Sisters: The Complete First Season -it desperately craves your love (this one's so codependent with the audience) it requires your patience with its histrionics (endless). It rewards those things with compulsive watchability... and of course Sally Field

Bug -Ashley Judd and Michael Shannon deal with infestations of the body... or mind. Director William Friedkin (The Exorcist) helps them freak you out. I loved the play so much I overhyped myself on this one --I was probably more disappointed than I should have been though I did like it. I plan to watch it again soon. [more blather on the hype vs reality problem here and the next victim I fear it'll take] If you're seeing Bug for the first time do share -- did it burrow under your skin?

Death Proof -I've excluded the Grindhouse preface to this title because they've neutered that angle in DVD release form. Tarantino's car chase epic is expanded to 113 minutes now so even more tedium awaits! I realize this film has many vocal fans but if you're one of them, please for the love of celluloid explain to me how you stayed awake for the first interminable hour. I need to know. Figure it might be useful next time I have to go to work after a whole night of insomnia.

Jindabyne -Because it won awards @ Stale Popcorn and because Nick seconds that love

Next -The only Julianne Moore movie that I ever skipped (and she makes a lot of clunkers --so basically I'm a saint). I passed on account of terrible reviews but mostly on account of Nicolas Cage whom I've only been tricked into looking at a few times in the past 10 years, a major feat since he makes so many movies.

My body trembles at the thought of renting this. Netflix adds a cold sweat to those shakes by sharing that the folks who loved Ghost Rider, Wild Wild West and Fantastic Four "recommend" it. As, what, a torture device? I'm just asking.

Snow Cake & The TV Set -A Sigourney Weaver double feature? Why not. (prev thoughts on TV Set here)

Zoo -I dunno. But Nick likes it a lot and I am occassionally found watching documentaries. Only very occassionally. A character flaw I know.

Will you be renting any of these or giving them a second go. Thoughts?

What If You Do Great Work and Hollywood Doesn't Notice?

Hood-riding Death Proof amazon Zoë Bell, surprise badass Freddy Rodriguez (I did not see "El Ray" coming watching Six Feet Under, did you?), and syringe-wielding wide eyed Marley Shelton were the revelations of Grindhouse this past Spring. While it's true that the movie flopped it's also true that actors can ignite their careers by doing unarguably charismatic and scene-stealing work. Even in flops.

Zoë Bell is getting her shot with a project developed for her but what the hell is going on with Freddy & Marley? Freddy has only another ensemble role on the way. He'll be part of the Napa wine industry drama Bottle Shock. Marley, so completely attuned to Planet Terror's comic absurdity and giving the movie a couple of its very best moments. Where's the breakthrough? I sincerely hope this is a case of delayed career explosion. Maybe she's taking meetings every day in Hollywood... perhaps she's swimming in offers and I just don't know it. She has only one new film listed on IMDB and she was probably involved with that before Planet Terror premiered. Why isn't she being cast in everything? I demand an answer!

We Can't Wait #10 Grindhouse

Rose & Marley team up with guys from the mortuary and a deserted island

There's recently been an announcement that both "Death Proof" and "Planet Terror", the two halves that make up Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's exploitation Grindhouse feature, will have 'reels missing'. The last time I saw a movie with a reel missing was on the DVD of Judy Garland's A Star is Born (1954). So, uh, maybe I'm the wrong audience for this? This was high on three lists but absent on mine and Stinky Lulu's. Sell us on it guys. Or am I just being 'withholding' because I want lazy QT to make full movies and not dick around so much inbetween the masterpieces...

JA: The "missing reel" thing strikes me as maybe a little too gimmicky, too, but I get what they're going for and if it isn't completely distracting to the point of annoyance then I can deal with it. And you wanna know why I can deal with it? ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. That is a sentence that was formed by climbing into the Mt. Doom of my imagination and taking the molten essence of coolness and solidifying it into a pure and golden perfectness.

Lulu: A machine gun for a leg!?! Well, then...

Gabriel: Ja, you are my soul sister. Rodriguez and Tarantino are ideally suited for this kind of reimagined exploitation flick, and it's sure to be a lot of fun, but the important thing to remember is that ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. Can this be what heaven feels like?

Joe: Does that machine gun shoot vitafirm serum? Because have you seen her face lately?

No matter, this is my kind of movie. I am completely in love with the enthusiasm Rodriguez and Tarantino bring to the screen. And when they team up? Even when it’s bad, it’s so, so good. Has anyone seen the stand-up display for Grindhouse at your local theatre? Even the marketing is coked-up. Coked-up with a love of making movies, I mean!



Nathaniel: I haven't seen the stand-up yet --I'm on my annual one month break from moviegoing -- but I concur on the enthusiasm factor. I imagine a lot of directors, if they're feeling self-aware, are probably a little embarassed watching Tarantino flicks, just for the sheer verve of them. So many films feel sleepy (as droopy eyed as Rose?) in comparison.

That said, Grindhouse might be a little violence for violence sake for me to enjoy. Like Sin City Redux only hopefully more inventive since it doesn't have to adhere to source material.

* NEW FOOTAGE is up at Yahoo Movies


previously on "we can't wait"
#11 Bug, #12 Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum, Intro -films that didn't make it

tags: Quentin Tarantino, grindhouse, Rose McGowan, movie, cinema, Robert Rodriguez

We Can't Wait #10 Grindhouse

Rose & Marley team up with guys from the mortuary and a deserted island

There's recently been an announcement that both "Death Proof" and "Planet Terror", the two halves that make up Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's exploitation Grindhouse feature, will have 'reels missing'. The last time I saw a movie with a reel missing was on the DVD of Judy Garland's A Star is Born (1954). So, uh, maybe I'm the wrong audience for this? This was high on three lists but absent on mine and Stinky Lulu's. Sell us on it guys. Or am I just being 'withholding' because I want lazy QT to make full movies and not dick around so much inbetween the masterpieces...

JA: The "missing reel" thing strikes me as maybe a little too gimmicky, too, but I get what they're going for and if it isn't completely distracting to the point of annoyance then I can deal with it. And you wanna know why I can deal with it? ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. That is a sentence that was formed by climbing into the Mt. Doom of my imagination and taking the molten essence of coolness and solidifying it into a pure and golden perfectness.

Lulu: A machine gun for a leg!?! Well, then...

Gabriel: Ja, you are my soul sister. Rodriguez and Tarantino are ideally suited for this kind of reimagined exploitation flick, and it's sure to be a lot of fun, but the important thing to remember is that ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG. Can this be what heaven feels like?

Joe: Does that machine gun shoot vitafirm serum? Because have you seen her face lately?

No matter, this is my kind of movie. I am completely in love with the enthusiasm Rodriguez and Tarantino bring to the screen. And when they team up? Even when it’s bad, it’s so, so good. Has anyone seen the stand-up display for Grindhouse at your local theatre? Even the marketing is coked-up. Coked-up with a love of making movies, I mean!



Nathaniel: I haven't seen the stand-up yet --I'm on my annual one month break from moviegoing -- but I concur on the enthusiasm factor. I imagine a lot of directors, if they're feeling self-aware, are probably a little embarassed watching Tarantino flicks, just for the sheer verve of them. So many films feel sleepy (as droopy eyed as Rose?) in comparison.

That said, Grindhouse might be a little violence for violence sake for me to enjoy. Like Sin City Redux only hopefully more inventive since it doesn't have to adhere to source material.

* NEW FOOTAGE is up at Yahoo Movies


previously on "we can't wait"
#11 Bug, #12 Sunshine, #13 Southland Tales, #14 300, #15 Hot Fuzz, #16 Stardust, #17 The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, #18 Spider-Man 3, #19 Rendition, #20 The Bourne Ultimatum, Intro -films that didn't make it

tags: Quentin Tarantino, grindhouse, Rose McGowan, movie, cinema, Robert Rodriguez