Rough Hewn and Hardcore History: Instrument (1998)

Jem Cohen's alt-documentary Instrument (1999) on the post-punk band Fugazi, screened at Chicago's most alt-art house theater, Chicago Filmmakers on March 15 to a sizable crowd—at least considering what the theater normally draws in on any given Saturday night on the far-North side of Chicago. Only one other time have I seen a crowd outnumber Instrument's; about a year ago the CF curators picked up the never-seen Super-8 home movie reels of President Richard Nixon and his staff from the Library of Congress to, I believe, a sold out crowd of...50? And even that could be an exaggerated figure.

As for the venue itself, Chicago Filmmakers can't quite be classified as a theater. With its neat rows of stacking chairs lined before a projection screen not much larger than 8-feet square, Chicago Filmmakers more closely resembles a ramshackle screening room, which I should insert only adds to its earnest charm. There are no snacks or concessions, and I have no clue where the restroom might be. But you don't go to Chicago Filmmakers to be comfortable. In a way, its reminiscent of a classroom screening room; you believe you are watching something worth paying serious attention to for broader reasons than mere entertainment. I'll fess up, I brought my notebook to last December's Len Lye screening.

Instrument began with a bang. Fervent visions of Ian MacKaye and his Fugazi bandmates filled the screen and funk-infused punk beats rattled the eardrum. This was optimistic. It was a lot of unrestrained visual and aural energy, brought to life with Super-8, 16mm and video footage, and various clips from concerts and jam sessions from ten years of the band's history. For someone like myself who doesn't know the D.C. based band, it is a kind introduction to Fugazi's music, philosophy and politics. They are the least likely in the music industry to sell out to "the man"; MacKaye co-created his own independent record label, Dischord Records, to avoid just that. The band manages themselves and records in the basement of an anonymous suburban home. With no pretension of the typical rock lifestyle, it's not Entertainment Tonight they seek for their band's promotion; Ian MacKaye sits down for an 8th grade class's rip on a daytime talk show interview (the pubescent hostess awkwardly asks on the grainy home movie tape, "I understand you've brought a clip, is that correct?") Yet with only underground or grassroots promotion, solely playing all-ages shows in places like school gyms or local homes, the class interview is a strange but wise regional promotion campaign, and as the film proves in time, a rather smart way to turn youth on to their pacifist and liberal political message.

The film runs at 115 minutes, but probably could have been shaved down to the 90-minute range (or less), if only to halt the repetition of images and tropes we've already seen. The most pronounced of those was a sequence of the faces of fans in line before the show: close-ups of disaffected youth, straight-faced and wearing grungy t-shirts and over-sized flannels, it had the odd likeness of monotonously flipping through a stranger's old yearbook. Though it does, nonetheless, serve as a handy sequel to 2006's American Hardcore that much of the time centers on Ian MacKaye's earlier years with Black Flag.

Planet B-Boy: An American Art Form Gone Overseas

Last spring, Planet B-Boy, a documentary chronicling the history of breakdance along with the journeys of four different B-Boy teams from around the world, premiered at the sixth annual Tribeca Film Festival. Directed by Benson Lee, an award-winning Korean American filmmaker, the documentary is an alumnus of the Independent Feature Project Market and tells the fascinating story of how breakdancing initially began in the streets of New York, but eventually spread to every corner of the global map. Perhaps even more compelling than the art form's dissemination to other countries still, are the stories of the featured B-Boys themselves, who hail from South Korea, Japan, France, and the United States. Together, in their respective crews, these dancers have found breaking to be both a transformative art as well as an empowering force in their own identity formation.

Planet B-Boy was finally released into NY and LA theaters for a limited run on March 21st. Musically driven, underpinned by the thrill of spectacle, yet narratively structured so as to resonate emotionally, the film is uncannily modern, as it touches upon the themes of race and cultural hybridity, self-sacrifice, and brotherhood. To find out more, go to www.planetbboy.com. The trailer as well as a clip from the movie follow after the jump.

Obama Speech: 'A More Perfect Union'

Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, liberal, or conservative, there seems to be an astoundingly uniform consensus across the blogosphere-- and even amongst the most contentious of political pundits on television airwaves-- that Barack Obama's speech on race in America yesterday was nothing less than extraordinary. Audacious for its brutally honest commentary upon race relations and institutionalized racism within American society, Obama shocked millions of Americans with his boldness in stating what most in this country would deem too "impolite" or "taboo" to mention in mixed company-- let alone from a platform as conspicuous as a Presidential campaign.

With everything to lose on the line, Obama seems to have lain down the gauntlet-- not only to Hillary Clinton and her allies within the political arena, but to the American people and, yes, to the media as well. Inevitably, there are a few outraged detractors who insist upon realizing Obama's worst predictions about the outcome of this speech:

"We can accept a politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism. We can tackle race only as spectacle - as we did in the OJ trial - or in the wake of tragedy, as we did in the aftermath of Katrina - or as fodder for the nightly news. We can play Reverend Wright's sermons on every channel, every day and talk about them from now until the election, and make the only question in this campaign whether or not the American people think that I somehow believe or sympathize with his most offensive words. We can pounce on some gaffe by a Hillary supporter as evidence that she's playing the race card, or we can speculate on whether white men will all flock to John McCain in the general election regardless of his policies. We can do that."

The team at FOX News, in particular, seem to have become literally obsessed with dissecting 30 second sound bytes of Obama's speech at a time. The full delivery of his speech lasted more than 37 minutes!

In order to give give viewers the full scope and complexity of Obama's address, here, in its entirety, is the video:

Anthony Minghella has passed away

In a sad and shocking twist of fate, English director Anthony Minghella passed away this morning in London at the age of 54, due to a brain hemorrhage during a routine operation on his neck. Beloved by his actors, esteemed by all his peers in the film community, Minghella was best known for his Academy-Award-winning films, The English Patient, The Talented Mr. Ripley, and Cold Mountain.

If only CNN pundits could be this entertaining...

In true SNL form, and buoyed by the giddiness of a return to national airwaves after a protracted Writers' strike, Tina Fey delivered her thinly veiled endorsement of Hillary Clinton for President on Saturday Night Live's February 23rd installment of "Weekend Update." Apparently, "bitch is the new black"!


While I refrain from revealing my own bias for any particular candidate on this forum (for now), I will, however, admit my delight in Tracy Morgan's hilarious rebuttal to Tina Fey's feminist rally on March 15th:



Let's hope that SNL continues to build on this momentum to create another truly memorable year of Presidential Election comedy!