Tag: smug film

An Interview with the Directors of ‘A Band Called Death’, Jeff Howlett & Mark Covino

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From left: Jeff Howlett, Mark Covino

A Band Called Death is one of my favorite films of 2013. It’s everything you could want from a music doc—great music, plus a compelling and unique story, told with love and care. I’m sure it will go down as one of best music docs of all time, right up there with Don’t Look Back and Gimme Shelter and Some Kind of Monster.

In a way, it’s not just a story about an interesting rock band, but a time capsule of the power of the time we live in—how music can be discovered nowadays, and how, through the power of the internet, and a generation of music lovers bent on discovering missing pieces of music history, a timeless band from the past who never had the right exposure can finally reach the audience they always deserved.

It’s a fascinating flick, and I’m honored to have had the opportunity to sit down and pick the brains of its filmmakers:
Continue reading An Interview with the Directors of ‘A Band Called Death’, Jeff Howlett & Mark Covino

Rest in Peace, Harold Ramis

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Since we started this website, I’ve always felt like I was on a mission. A mission, despite the fact that, at the end of the day, nothing anybody says about art matters at all.  Art is an individual experience—even in a group, it’s an individual experience.  I can’t convince you of anything, and you can’t convince me.  And it should be that way.  But right now, fuck all that.

Ghostbusters is high art.  Ghostbusters should be thought of the way the Mona Lisa is—as this sacred, unachievable thing forged from genius—because that’s exactly what it is, and it’s been my mission to explain that concept.  There are only about a dozen great movies, and these movies are untouchable.  They are perfect in every way, and they represent the ultimate synthesis of story, performance, writing, color, music, and all the myriad elements that come together to make whatever is on screen at any given moment the perfect thing.

People don’t give a fuck about art.  They like things all willy-nilly and just regurgitate whatever fucking nonsense someone says about why Raging Bull is brilliant.  Fuck all that noise.  Movies like Ghostbusters are advanced.  They do all of the artistic shit Raging Bull does, but for the purpose of entertainment, of making you soak into the movie.  That is beautiful, that is advanced, that is transcendent, and that could only happen a dozen times in about a century because it’s insanely hard to do.

And Ghostbusters isn’t even his best movie.
Continue reading Rest in Peace, Harold Ramis

The Greatest Movie Mashup: ‘Spring Breakers’ & ‘Heavyweights’

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There are a lot of movie mashups out there on this here internet, many of them quite funny, but it’s pretty rare that you come across one that’s perfect. For a long time, Brokeback to the Future has been the undisputed king of this, but I believe that title has now been usurped by an up-and-comer by the name of Harmony Korine’s Heavyweights. It might not be as ‘funny’ (in the traditional sense of the word) but it makes up for that in pure transcendence.

Much like the music mashup gold standard, A Stroke of Genie-us by Freelance Hellraiser, what transpires is definitely funny, but you’re not exactly laughing. Instead, you’re smiling, and you’re feeling the laughs all throughout your body, warming you. It’s a rush of all-things-are-connected-in-this-world that takes hold of you and provides you a momentary trip. That is the power of the art of the mashup, when what is being mashed up comes together like peanut butter and jelly.

Behold this delicious sandwich:
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Watch My Films, ‘Shredder’ and ‘Rehearsals’, For Free!

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Hey everybody. It’s your ol’ pal Cody Clarke, editor-in-chief and weekly critic at this here Smug Film. We’ve built a bit of a relationship, y’all and I, over the year-and-a-month that this site’s been in existence. I feel the love from you coming here and reading all our stuff, and I hope you feel the love right back from me. We’ve got a great thing between us, you shadowy blips on the views counter and myself. Sometimes I wish you’d participate more with comments and stuff, but s’all good—you read, you enjoy, and that’s what matters most of all.

Because we don’t exactly talk much—like I said, totally fine, no worries—you might not know that I’m not just a pontificator on all things film—I’m a maker of them as well. I’ve made two feature-length films to date—Shredder and Rehearsals. Ya boy Harry Brewis reviewed the former on here not too long ago, and ya girl Chloe Pelletier reviewed the latter. These films mean a lot to them, and mean a lot to a bunch of other people. But as of yet, they remain unseen by most.
Continue reading Watch My Films, ‘Shredder’ and ‘Rehearsals’, For Free!

An Interview with Madeline Blue of ‘Wet Hot American Summer’ and ‘Justified’

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I met Madeline Blue in quite the serendipitous way. My friend / next door neighbor Jeanine asked me how my mom was doing, because she’s been quite ill this winter. I told her she was a bit better, but still very much on the mend, and that I’d been spending a lot of time with her watching TV—in particular, we’d been marathoning the brilliant FX series Justified. “My friend was on Justified!” My jaw dropped. “Yeah, and she’s been staying with me the past couple days!” My jaw dislodged entirely and fell to the floor and spent way longer than the five-second rule there.

Turns out her friend Madeline had played a prostitute by the name of Minerva in the third season. A quick IMDb-ing refreshed me as to which prostitute this was, and also enlightened me to the fact that this very same actress had also played the highly-memorable role of ‘Cure Girl’ in one of the greatest comedies of all time, Wet Hot American Summer—a favorite not only of mine, but of my mom’s as well.

I knew that a surprise visit from her would be the perfect thing to help perk my mom up. Jeanine agreed, and put me and Madeline together, who immediately got the synchronicity of it and was more than happy to do it. And it couldn’t have gone better.
Continue reading An Interview with Madeline Blue of ‘Wet Hot American Summer’ and ‘Justified’