It is possibly indicative of the insularity of the world inhabited by filmmaker Mike Myers and the interview subjects of his non-fiction feature (you can’t, or shouldn’t, really call it a documentary) Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon) that the t‑shirt worn by Mr. Gordon during his ’70s heyday is referenced as if it’s kind of charming. We can make an excuse for the Funkadelic song because it’s a piece of sociological observation as well as a funk monster. Anyway, Supermensch is one of the three motion pictures I review for RogerEbert.com this week, the other two being Ti West’s not-bad The Sacrament and Clark Gregg’s highly unfortunate Trust Me. As far as Edge of Tomorrow is concerned, I’m for it, although one of these days I’m going to have to develop a unified field theory of the Final 25 Minute Blockbuster Fizz Out. And that movie based on the YA novel, I haven’t seen it, but good God I wish I’d written the book because then I’d be in Maui or Paris right now.
I haven’t read any of his fiction, but John Green is an interesting fellow, having built up a online followership like so many young authors. He has online videos giving lectures on literature that are, at the least, not dumb:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4kz-C7GryY&list=PL8dPuuaLjXtOeEc9ME62zTfqc0h6Pe8vb
howdy. this is completely unrelated to the above post, but it’s something that’s driving me NUTS. a few years ago John Ford’s film Wagon Master was finally released on DVD. I’ve rented it twice, and both times I was annoyed to find that the DVD opens in the middle of what appears to be a cross-fade from another scene (a close-up of a wanted poster, but you can barely make out the face on the poster due to the brevity of the shot) and then abruptly lurches into a bank robbery which concludes really swiftly. I’ve had conversations with people online who say that this is the way the film is supposed to start. is that really possible? the scene lasts for barely thirty seconds and makes no real sense to the viewer. I know that the credits happen after the robbery, but aren’t the robbers given some dialogue or some kind of introduction before the robbery itself?
I haven’t seen Supermensch yet, but your review reads more positively than 2.5 stars. The only negative remarks you make are about showbiz stories in general, the offensive t‑shirt, and whether or not young people will understand the context of Alice Cooper’s career. If you’re going to take it below the 3 star mark you should be a little clearer in what the problems with the film are.
“The movie’s nutritional value, documentary wise, is pretty dubious…” I don’t know what more you want.
“I know that people consider male urban hipster journalists pretty irritating, but come on.”
Love this.
Amy Seimetz sure has been busy lately. Interested to see where things go for her.