‘It needs to be loud’: Jozef Van Wissem’s one-man mission to make the lute rock again

-
The Dutch ex-punk and Jim Jarmusch bandmate talks about his passion to free up a hidebound repertoire and make its strings ‘a real pop instrument’ Nobody can accuse Jozef Van Wissem of doing things by halves. The musician, very likely the world’s most notorious contemporary lutenist, owns a sonic arsenal of eight of the string instruments: some bespoke, and all boasting remarkable features. With them he has created a huge body of work, nearly 50 titles to date. Another album, This Is My Blood is released this May. Each Easter, Van Wissem settles down to compose a new record. He finds the peace of Warsaw, where everyone has “gone away for the holidays”, more amenable for work than “noisy” Rotterdam, where he also has a flat. Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/lIktvjD via IFTTT
Post a Comment

The Narrow Road review – tough times for the downtrodden in pandemic Hong Kong

-

After deciding it’s time to seek help with his cleaning business, despairing Chak meets the zanily upbeat Candy

Set in Hong Kong during the early days of the pandemic, Lam Sum’s tender drama pictures a city haunted by economic and political uncertainty. Storefronts are plastered with foreclosure and bankruptcy notices, while talk of moving abroad hovers amid everyday conversations. Plagued by faulty equipment, the one-man sanitary service operated by world-weary Chak (played by Cantopop star Louis Cheung) is on the verge of breaking down. When asked by his ailing mother if God is telling him to give up the business, Chak self-deprecatingly describes himself as a speck of dust, so tiny that even the deities would not take notice.

Reluctantly hired as an extra pair of helping hands on his cleaning rounds, single-mom Candy (Angela Yuen) enters Chak’s life like a whirlwind of chaos. With her impossibly sunny attitude and colourful fashion sense, Candy could have come off as a manic pixie archetype; Yuen instead manages to lend an emotional weight to the character’s capricious quirkiness. A particularly devastating sequence finds the pair scrubbing the human-shaped stain left by a nameless soul who has died alone in squalor, another speck of dust forgotten by the outside world.

Continue reading...

from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/bpZnXhg
via IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Miracle Club review – Maggie Smith can’t save this rocky road trip to Lourdes

-
Laura Linney is upstaged by older co-stars Smith and Kathy Bates in this sentimental tale about a group of Dublin women who go on a spiritual journey together Who’s up for a golden-hued heartwarmer set in 60s Ireland starring Kathy Bates and Maggie Smith about women with secret fears and dreams going on a church trip to Lourdes and finally finding the real miracle is their new compassion for each other? The answer to this question could well have been … me. I have a liking for a gentle tale and there is nothing necessarily wrong with, just occasionally, showing Ireland and the church of this period with something other than outrage and horror. But The Miracle Club does not at any time, to use a discredited metaphor, throw away its crutches and walk. And it’s painful to note that this is largely because of the way film can’t convincingly use that estimable actor Laura Linney in a central role. She is upstaged by the older, fruitier performances and doesn’t hold her own with a more seri...
Read more

‘I lost a friend of almost 40 years’: Nancy Meyers pays tribute to Diane Keaton

-
Film-maker who directed Keaton in Something’s Gotta Give, and wrote Baby Boom and Father of the Bride, says ‘we have lost a giant’ Film-maker Nancy Meyers has paid tribute to the late Diane Keaton, her “friend of almost 40 years” and collaborator on celebrated comedies Something’s Gotta Give, Baby Boom and Father of the Bride. On Monday, Meyers wrote on Instagram that she’d had a difficult 48 hours since Keaton’s death was announced on Saturday, but “seeing all of your tributes to Diane has been a comfort.” Continue reading... from Film | The Guardian https://ift.tt/TFc820j via IFTTT
Read more

Malaika Arora scolds 16-year-old dancer for inappropriate gestures: “He is winking, giving flying kisses”

-
Bollywood diva Malaika Arora found herself at the center of an unexpected controversy during the filming of Hip Hop India Season 2. The popular dance reality show, judged by Arora alongside choreographer-director Remo D’Souza, took an awkward turn when a 16-year-old contestant made suggestive gestures toward her during his performance. The incident, which left Malaika visibly uncomfortable, was captured on video and has since gone viral. What Happened on Hip Hop India Season 2? The incident unfolded during a recent episode of Hip Hop India Season 2, which streams on Amazon MX Player and showcases India’s top hip-hop talent. While judging a contestant’s performance, Malaika noticed the young dancer directing inappropriate gestures her way, including winking and blowing flying kisses. Clearly taken aback, the actress and fitness icon didn’t hold back her disapproval. In the now-viral footage, she can be heard reprimanding the teenager, sternly demanding, “Mummy ka phone number do!” (Giv...
Read more