The Tyler Cowen

1. NKEconWatch on North Korea's housing initiatives. The degree of attention this blog lavishes on the details is astounding.
2. More people voting with their feet. Times must be getting tough in the Hermit Kingdom.
3. North Korea's entrepreneurship abroad.
4. Beautiful, interactive infographic charting population movement around the world. (Although their data shows no movement from North to South Korea.) Via Infosthetics.
5. The Year of Wonders. Via The Browser.

Serenity Review

"Wait...Buffy and Angel? Aren't those...like...vampire shows?"

Serenity has a difficult line to straddle. It must be accessible to those not steeped in Firefly's universe (not a small percentage of the population given the low ratings and subsequent cancellation of the show) while not retreading so much ground as to be redundant to the faithful (for whom, it must be noted, the movie was almost exclusively created). In short, it must be a movie for everyone and a last ditch, Hail Mary of an attempt to stir up enough interest to get the show back on the airwaves. Does it succeed? In all ways but one.

The show, after all, was never resuscitated.

The Tyler Cowen

Minimal updates today. Our crack team of journalists is heading to...the Philippines. For what they assure me is the scoop of the century. On a beach. Thankfully I don't pay them anything so I can't get too bent out of shape as they slowly burn to a crisp on vacation.

We'll be back in the saddle next Wednesday fans, with more of the content that you love. Until then, enjoy.

2012 Review

My review of Inception was hardly glowing and based on some pretty unapologetic criticisms of not just the movie but the psychological soundness of those who enjoyed it. While I'm not going to back down from those comments, I will post a glowing review of 2012. That way, those who love Inception can discount my disgust as the ramblings of a madman and refer to my 2012 review as proof of my lunacy. To all the Inception fans out there: this is my gift to you.

2012 is everything a disaster movie should be.

Inception Review

Here's hoping we're far enough removed from Inception's hype for a clear-eyed (and not overwhelmingly positive) review to not be met with anger.

Look serious and people will take you seriously.

Collapse Review

Collapse is a documentary filmed in the spring of 2009 that deals with the pending collapse of modern human civilization. It stars Michael Ruppert, a 60-year old ex-police officer currently living in Napa County, California. 'Stars' might be a misleading word actually. Collapse is essentially an 82-minute monologue by Ruppert, interspersed with archival footage and the occasional off-camera question from his interlocutor, director Chris Smith. It is, at turns, fascinating, terrifying, and cringe-worthy.

Inglorious Basterds Review

What is your favorite Quentin Tarantino movie?

This could be a Rorchach test for a specific subset of our pop-culture population. His movies cover a wide swath of subjects and locations but are anchored by the twin weights of beautifully written dialogue and a fetish for violence. There is also, somewhere, vengeance simmering, perhaps to justify the blood and our revelry in it. And finally, across the board, a tint of camp through which Tarantino's passion shines and makes him a celebrity of a stripe not normally seen in directors.

So what is yours? Pulp Fiction with its loon-juicingly sexy dialogue? Reservoir Dogs with its most disagreeable violence? Is it the sleek Kill Bill which nails the naval-gazing of Samuri-Cowboy mutual respect better than any anime? Or perhaps the fractured camp of Death Proof which, in killing its original leading ladies, grainy film, and sex appeal halfway through, might be the clearest of Tarantino's indictments of modern film?

Appaloosa Review

Ed Harris and Viggo Mortenson, seemingly out of nowhere, decided the time was ripe for a throw-back Western. Thankfully, they're a talented couple of people so the resulting flick was downright enjoyable. Or more accurately, it is enjoyable as long as you can overlook / accept a few key points.

1. Appaloosa is in the vein of Clint Eastwood westerns of the 60's and 70's. It's a story about terse men living at the edge of civilization where the luxuries of modernity are mostly missing. This starkness extends beyond outhouses (although an outhouse visit weaves its way into the plot) to human interaction. Relationships congeal faster than one would expect. If you are willing to accept certain emotional connections between characters who, five minutes earlier, had just met, as honest depictions of life on the frontier instead of sloppy writing, the core of the movie will pack some punch. Personally, I went for it, assuming that shorter life expectancies and harsher conditions validated relationships built on little foreplay or courtship.
2. There are more than a few cliches on display here. Church-bells clang doomingly over draws, secondary characters might as well be part of the scenery, and a cowboy goes so far as to ride off into the sunset. Again, if you're already drowning in meta post-modern references, these tropes might seem tired to you. I never felt like the movie was winking at me, however, which is where I draw my threshold for cliche. These scenes didn't feel forced or even self-aware and their honesty made them palatable. 
3. Renee Zellweger. She is enormously hit-or-miss for me. There's something about the squeaky voice emanating from a face contorted into that twisted half-smile that can really get on my nerves when the movie asks me to find her cute or attractive. Thankfully, Appaloosa didn't ask this of me and her unsettling nature fit well with the setting. 

So what are we left with after you've accepted the above? Two great actors who are having a good time stretching their legs, some snappy direction, and an uncomplicated but engaging plot. Neither role asks much of the two leads but Ed Harris has a few gut-checking moments as his seemingly unflappable tough-guy gets flapped. And Viggo is just fun to watch. He's very comfortable in his role and nothing feels forced, though his is the more stereotypical character by the end. 

So I'm saying it's good. It doesn't break any new ground in re-imagining the classic western but it doesn't do the genre a disservice either. Watch it you princes of Maine, you queens of New New York.