Back in 2013, professional golfer and Enbrel spokesperson Phil Mickelson said, in response to California's tax hikes on the rich, that he might be forced to make "drastic changes." Rather than pay his fair share, Mickelson suggested he might just quit golf or leave the state of California.
Mickelson claimed, "If you add up all the federal and you look at the disability and the unemployment and the Social Security and the state, my tax rate's 62, 63 percent. So I've got to make some decisions on what I'm going to do."
Right. Because why kill yourself playing a game for a living when you could just do nothing.
But then several tax experts went on record saying it is highly unlikely Mickelson was "paying a rate above 60 percent. With even the most basic tax planning, they said, his real rate is most likely closer to 50 percent." But hey, what's a 13% discrepency between what Mickelson claims and what the reality most likely is?
Furthermore, since his investment earnings are taxed as capital gains, he's only paying a rate of 20% - 23.8% on those.
Regardless, this amount was too large for Mickelson who acted like a big baby. And when he was called on being a cheap, rich ass, his response was a typical non-apology apology, "Finances and taxes are a personal matter and I should not have made my opinions on them public. I apologize to those I have upset or insulted and assure you I intend to not let it happen again."
What Mickelson seems to have allowed to happen this time was him getting caught up in a federal insider trading investigation.
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating possible insider trading involving billionaire investor Carl Icahn, golfer Phil Mickelson and Las Vegas gambler William Walters, a source familiar with the matter said.
Federal investigators are looking into whether Mickelson and Walters may have traded illegally on private information provided by Icahn about his investments in public corporations, the source told Reuters, confirming a report by the Wall Street Journal on Friday.
Pets are cherished family members, unless they become too much work or stop teaching us stuff. Then they need a good home with a kind freecycler ASAP. Or we might just have to eat them.
OFFER: 10 Gal tank with Gold fish This tank is getting on my nerves. It works GREAT but I don't have time to up keep. It will need new filters and a very very good cleaning but you can have it, I will pour the water out. If you would like the fish too let me know. I am giving it away as well. He is a white with orange head goldfish. We named him Bob. But we don't get to take good care of him so please come get ASAP. (Comes with a magnetic tank cleaner and a few tank decorations).
OFFER: Clown Loach in Catonsville I have a clown loach (freshwater aquarium fish) that has been in my tank for about six months. He is healthy and growing, currently about three inches long. He has begun to pester two parrot head cichlids that I've had for about a year and a half. I have him isolated in a tank by himself until a suitable home can be found. He would be happiest in a tank with other loaches, but is a peaceful community fish and will get along with almost any other fish that isn't too aggressive. You will need to bring a container to transport him. Please state a day and time when you could pick up. I am home most days and evenings unless I am shuttling one kid or another somewhere.
OFFER: 50 Live Tilapia - 21227 We grew these fish from fingerlings over the summer to learn a bit about aquaculture -- 50/50 mix of males and females. They are now full grow and we don't need them anymore. We have given some to schools and others to friends. Remember, these fish require heated water (~60 F). They are great for aquaponics (i.e. produce a lot of waste that could fertilize a hydroponic plant growth system).
You must pickup -- depending on how many you are interested in, they can be transported in a small aquarium with warm water. These fish are incredibly robust, easy to care for. Looking to get rid of them ASAP. * Not recommended for human consumption *
DESPERATELY SEEKING HOME or shelter FOR PET POT BELLIED PIG asap!! This pig is in desperate need of a home or actual lead to a person or place that can take him. This pig needs to find a home asap or the worst will come to him :-( If you know of any shelter that can take a pig please call the shelter and tell them it is an emergency situation and let this woman Carol know by email. She will give you her phone number for more information. She has contacted all of the pig shelters she could think of and every one of them said "We are not taking pigs right now" I dont understand that. How can a shelter refuse a pig that needs a home? Isnt that what they are for?
Anywho... Lets make this poor pigs fate our mission ok!! Pot bellied pigs just dont have a big enough following to find a home easily.
ADVLTS new 6-song 7-inch (SouthPaw Records) is evidence of what one becomes when one no longer qualifies as a juvenile delinquent: older yes, but in no way reluctant to snatch you up by the collar of your black (insert name) T, yanking you back and forth between your patchy, overly-romanticized punker past and a flaccid, greying future in which you might be willing to listen to songs newer than the shoes you're wearing.
Misdirected, mastubatory or not, youthful anger has never not been legit. We all suffered from, and lived through it, and the best of its manifestations are legion. But maybe what it really takes is the sustained blast furnace of a more advanced age to more fully realize the caustic potential of the black spiral scratch.
What you have here is not about giving a fuck or being beyond giving a fuck or a casual dismissal of whatever these Adults might have in front of them, 'cause you know man, it's gotta suck…. The sounds on this record are more like a determined defense of ADVLTS shared appreciations and assorted desperations, a committed stance in opposition to having their own bile served back to them as consumer driven reconstituted revolution or some new kinda media desperation.
Treat it as more than a mere record to add to your never complete enough collection, but as a physical contribution, a heavy, blunt piece, used in shoring up the foundations of the endless, weathering, often tottering, hand-stacked rock wall standing between what ADVLTS revere enough to maintain, protect and perpetuate and the surrounding territories, populated by bleating badasses standing, eager open mouths, like baby pigeons, waiting to have their necks shat down.
While Texas Republican Representative Pete Sessions may be engaged in a partisan witch hunt, it doesn't mean he knows what a witch hunt is.
This week he took to the House floor to respond to Democratic assertions that the Republican Benghazi Committee is a witch hunt by saying:
“Well, Mr. Speaker, that must mean there is a witch somewhere.”
Other things that, according to Session's logic, exist because people "hunt" them: - ghosts - demons - bigfoot - the Loch Ness Monster - aliens - communists in government - snipes
Director of Programming Eric Allen Hatch’s Maryland Film Fest 2014 “Insider Picks”
Maryland Film Festival is back May 7-11 for our 16th annual festival. As with each of the last 15 years, we’ll have ~50 feature films and ~75 short films. I know that’s a lot to read up on, so here’s a cheat sheet. The following isn’t me wearing my hat as MFF director of programming, but me giving some civilian insider tips that I think would be of special interest to my friends and all the cool kids who read the Shank. Whether you’re looking for this year’s Dogtooth, Tiny Furniture, Capturing the Friedmans, or Turin Horse—or all of the above—we have you covered. Thanks to Benn for giving us the space to enthuse about these films and filmmakers!
HERE ARE 12 MOVIES I THINK EVERYONE WILL FLIP OVER
APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR A great indie rom-com whose central character just happens to be a bi-sexual Iranian-American hipster. The film’s tension stems from the fact that she’s nervous about coming out to her parents (much to the frustration of the women in her life). Warm, hilarious, and insightful, I loved every minute of this film!
ART AND CRAFT Fascinating and funny documentary about an unforgettably quirky art forger who generously “donates” perfect fakes of small works by big artists to institutions all over the country, often duping them into placing the pieces on their wall. But has he met his match when a museum employee with an equal dose of OCD gets wise to his scheme?
CLUB SANDWICH A big-hearted Mexican coming-of-age comedy with a bit of a transgressive bite. A mom and her awkward pubescent son are lounging at a sleepy beachfront motel, when a teenage girl starts getting to know the boy better—something Mom might not be ready for. I saw more than 40 features at the most recent Toronto International Film Fest, and this hilarious humanist comedy was quite possibly the best.
DEEP CITY: THE BIRTH OF THE MIAMI SOUND If you’re into Numero’s Eccentric Soul reissues or documentaries like Thunder Soul and Wheedle’s Groove, this documentary about the Miami record label that launched the likes of Betty Wright and Clarence “Blowfly” Reid is tailor-made for you. No Searching for Sugarman surprises here, just fantastic soul music, warm personalities, and rich history passionately presented.
EVOLUTION OF A CRIMINAL I’ve never seen a film quite like this before. It’s the true-crime story of a bank robbery in Texas, told with a mixture of reenactments and documentary interviews. The catch? The director himself was one of the participants in the crime. A riveting film that has stuck in my head for weeks after seeing it.
FAULTS This dark comedy about a broken man who specializes in de-programming young cult members reminds me of Todd Solondz’s very best, boasting expertly crafted drama and thrills to boot. The superb cast of this SXSW standout includes Mary Elizabeth Winstead and The Wire’s Lance Reddick; we’re one of the few fests that’s been able to screen the film in the wake of that premiere, so don’t miss it!
FIGHT CHURCH If you love documentaries like Jesus Camp and Hell House, films willing to dig deep into subcultures on the fringe of mainstream Christianity, look no further then this documentary about pastors who double as MMA fighters! Just don’t expect a finger-wagging film that preaches to the converted.
FORT TILDEN Of the hundreds of films I watched in preparing the fest this year, none had me laughing as hard and as often. Winner of the grand jury award for narrative feature at SXSW 2014, it’s a satire of Brooklyn hipsters for whom getting to the beach becomes an impossible odyssey. If you love Girls, you’ll love this; and if you hate Girls, you’ll love this: the milieu is similar, but its characters are handled with a really dark and cutting edge.
KUMIKO, THE TREASURE HUNTER The Zellner brothers, the team behind off-beat MFF audience favorites Goliath and KID-THING, return with this film set in Japan and Minnesota. The story? A Japanese woman thinks her worn VHS copy of Fargo is sending her instructions on how to retrieve that film’s buried booty. Gorgeously shot, and punctuated by moments of trademark Zellner humor.
THE MEND If you can picture Cassavetes’ Husbands and Mike Leigh’s Naked in a stew spiced by just a dash of Judd Apatow, you’ll be in the right ballpark for this endlessly surprising, ever-inventive blend of comedy and drama. Two brothers with very different personalities reconnect as their lives fall apart, forming a new and uneasy bond driven by increasingly impetuous behavior. Seeing this at SXSW made me feel like the ante had been raised on what U.S. indie films can deliver.
THE STRANGE LITTLE CAT Set in a Berlin apartment on a sunny afternoon, this moving-image sculpture moves people, objects, and pets in and out of the frame with a visual sensibility that owes something to Robert Bresson and Chantal Akerman, yet with a lighter touch and sense of surprise all its own.
WHO TOOK JOHNNY Simply one of the most gripping documentaries I’ve ever seen, a must for fans of films like Capturing the Friedmans, The Thin Blue Line, and Paradise Lost. When paperboy Johnny Gosch disappeared in 1982, his picture appeared on milk cartons, catapulting the issue of missing children into the public’s imagination. Disturbing allegations and shocking theories about Johnny’s presumed abduction have come forward—some pointing to a conspiracy of horrific proportions.
HERE IS ONE TOTALLY INSANE FILM FOR THOSE WITH EXTREMELY OPEN MINDS AND STRONG STOMACHS
MOEBIUS This latest work from S. Korean master Kim Ki-duk (The Isle) is his most crazed and relentless yet. This wordless but sonically dynamic film opens with an act of violence as extreme as any previously depicted on film—a scene that had audience members at its Toronto premiere variously running for the exit, squealing in horror, or laughing manically (all valid reactions). It only gets crazier from there—but if you can take it, it’s all in the service of an amazing plot and a rather profound statement about human nature.
HERE ARE 4 AWESOME, CHALLENGING ART-HOUSE FILMS FOR THE REAL HEADS
MANAKAMANA From Harvard’s Sensory Ethnography Lab, the group behind Sweetgrass and Leviathan, comes this film that takes viewers on several real-time rides on the cable car that leads to and from Nepal’s Manakamana temple. It really does adhere to that structure, so viewers will want to be prepared to adjust their attention spans accordingly; but if this sounds appealing to you, I think there’s every chance you’ll find it richly rewarding.
EL LUGAR DEL HIJO / THE MILITANT TRAILER from Manolo Nieto on Vimeo. THE MILITANT From Uruguay comes this character study of a taciturn student organizer who relocates from the big-city university to a rural outpost after his father passes away. The film has one foot in the stark aesthetic of Argentine producer Lisandro Alonso (MFF 2010’s Liverpool), and another in quirky comedy.
STRAY DOGS Tsai Ming-Liang’s latest is definitely for patient viewers only; always known for his signature long takes, he’s stretching out his painterly set-ups even further with this first digital feature. But if his films are your cup of tea (we’ve screened his I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone and Walker in past years), you’ll want to make time for this new development in one of world cinema’s most important bodies of work.
VANQUISHING OF THE WITCH BABA YAGA Jessica Oreck’s film essay, driven by rich visuals and sound design at once futuristic and psychedelic brings to mind Sans Soleil in its combination of documentary, travelogue, film essay, folklore, and animation—and it’s possibly the only movie I’ve seen since that Chris Marker masterpiece that I feel is worthy of the comparison.
HERE’S A QUICK RUNDOWN OF OUR 3 KILLER REPERTORY CULT TITLES
BARBARELLA w/ MATMOS A 35mm print of the ecstatic, sex-crazed 1968 sci-fi film, presented by electronic duo Matmos, who took their name from the film! Join us in submitting to the irrepressible adventures of Barbarella and dashing rebel leader Dildano!
LIQUID SKY w/ Slava Tsukerman This early 80s sci-fi film about aliens descending on downtown New York’s art scene in search of heroin—and deciding instead to bottle the human orgasm. Presented by director Slava Tsukerman from his own 35mm print!
PUTNEY SWOPE w/ DJ Spooky Robert Downey, Sr.’s landmark underground film Putney Swope tells the story of the new head of a stodgy advertising agency (Arnold Johnson) who transforms the painfully white business into a Black Power outfit producing ads that are deliriously R-rated. Introduced by composer, visual artist, author, and film theorist DJ Spooky.
WHAT ELSE?
Freedom Summer would almost certainly be on this list, but I haven’t seen it yet (festival director Jed Dietz saw it at Sundance); director Stanley Nelson is probably the world’s best historical documentarian, and his Jonestown is easily in my top 10 docs.
So many amazing short films, with the indescribably mesmerizing Buffalo Juggalos jumping out at me as something Shank readers should know about.
Festival regulars John Waters (Abuse of Weakness) and Alloy Orchestra (He Who Gets Slapped) are both back; Ping Pong Summer, Michael Tully’s ode to summers spent in ‘80s Ocean City, which debuted at Sundance and took home an audience award at Sarasota, is having its local premiere with us! Ticket sales tell me you guys are already hip to these ones!
And, naturally, so much more. Got a question for me? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on Twitter at @ericallenhatch. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you at the movies!
Festival Programming Administrator Scott Braid’s Maryland Film Fest 2014 “Insider Picks”
Hello everyone!
It’s that time of year again where many of you (the ones that know me at least) haven’t seen me for months because I’ve been holed up in our 25th Street office day and night doing all the things it takes to put a film festival together. I am finally emerging from the cave of festival preparations to share my thoughts on a few of the many wonderful films in the 2014 Maryland Film Festival lineup.
It goes without saying that I am extremely fond of all the films that will be gracing the 7 screens of that comprise the 2014 MFF, but these are a few that, were I an attendee at the fest, I would make sure to fit into my busy viewing schedule. I hope you enjoy perusing this list and I look forward to seeing many of your wonderful faces around the festival!
CELESTIAL WIVES OF THE MEADOW MARI A lively and lusty film comprised of nearly two-dozen vignettes that explore the folklore, sexual rites and social mores of Russia’s Meadow Mari people. The Mari are a Volga-Finnic ethnic group who live along the Volga river and subscribe to a pagan belief system which places great value on nature and natural cycles, with an emphasis on sex and fertility! If you can imagine a collaboration between Robert Flaherty and Alejandro Jodorowsky (and that sounds like an amazing thing to you), this is your film!
GLENA A real life Rocky story, GLENA tells the tale of 30-something mother and professional Glena Avila who trades in her business suit for grappling gloves on a regular basis. This heartfelt doc traces Glena’s rise through the ranks of the amateur Mixed Martial Arts circuit and her attempts to go pro, while juggling family, career and relationship. An undeniably inspiring and emotional journey, Glena will appeal to people from all walks of life.
HELLION Kat Candler’s follow-up feature to her 2012 short of the same name is an emotionally charged and painstakingly realized dramatic portrait of an adolescent boy whose life is turned upside down after the death of his mother. Lead by powerful performances from Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul, newcomer Josh Wiggins and veteran Juliette Lewis, the film smartly and honestly positions the viewer within the world of a teenager struggling to come to terms with his lot in life, any way he knows how; even if it means anti-social tirades that result in big trouble. Easily one of the best American dramas of the year, see it here first.
SEPTEMBER Greek filmmaker, Penny Panayotopoulou’s brilliant second feature SEPTEMBER is a striking and assured work, that eschews the shock and awe tactics employed by several other contemporary Greek directors, in favor of a subtler and in many ways, more satisfying approach. The story of a solitary young woman, whose world implodes after the death of her dog, provides exceptional insight into human nature, over the course of a deeply satisfying viewing experience. The director will be joining us all the way from Greece!
SUMMER OF BLOOD Onur Tukel (star of MFF 2011 film Septien) takes us on a darkly hilarious journey through the misadventures of Brooklyn schlub-turned-vampire Erik Sparrow, a fantastically deluded, self-aggrandizing jerk, whose chance encounter with a suave vampire may just make him a better person (and a better lover)!
WATER LIKE STONE A beautiful and heartfelt portrait of a disappearing community and a disappearing way of life, WATER LIKE STONE tells the story of Leeville, LA. A small 200 year-old Gulf Coast town, Leeville is being lost to an encroaching rising sea level and continued economic devastation in the wake of repeated hurricane damage. Full of rich characters, poignant stories and valuable insights about the state of our world and our waterways, this documentary could just as easily have been made about a small town on our own Eastern Shore.
WILD CANARIES Festival faves Lawrence Levine (Gabi On The Roof In July) and Sophia Takal (Green) return to MFF with an uproarious and pulse pounding comedy-suspense-detective-romance! The film tells the story of a young couple who become engrossed in intrigue at their apartment building when their elderly neighbor turns up dead and the circumstances surrounding her passing seem a little to fishy not to be looked into. A fun and frenetic film that takes inspiration from (and does justice to!) such masters as Woody Allen and Peter Bogdanovich.
Let’s not neglect the shorts! Each program a selection of A1 bangers from the world of shorts films!
SHORTS ANIMATION The inventive and informative ALFRED JARRY & ‘PATAPHYSICS from Baltimore filmmaker Skizz Cyzyk, the dark and disturbing THE ALLIGATOR from Alexandra Barsky, and the ethereal LORD I: THE RECORDS KEEPER from Lori Damiano to name but a few!
SHORTS AVANT-GARDE Lots of local talent in this world-class program. Jimmy Joe Roche’s dead rat opus. Margaret Rorison’s beautiful experimental dance document PULL/DRIFT, Tom Borax’ snoot-a-delic olfactory escapade THE NOVICE CLAIRALIENT, masterful multimedia experimental animation EAGER from los Angeles-based artist Allison Schulnik, and 70s/80s porn mags come to life in Julie Orser’s XXX. Just a few of the thought-provoking films on offer in this program.
SHORTS CHARACTER STUDY An amazing assemblage of odd characters from the heartbreakingly-hilarious BE WITH ME, to the 70s superbowl romance of THE IMMACULATE RECEPTION, the charismatic and quirky street artist of I WILL PAINT YOUR SPIRIT, the biting role-reversal satire of NAILED IT, the 420-friendly detectives of SUPER SLEUTHS and the brilliant anti-romance of PERSON TO PERSON.
SHORTS DOCUMENTARY Covering such disparate, but equally fascinating topics as the life and times of David Hockney, a day in the life of Native American fisherman, eccentric bingo hosts, baadaasss teachers, silly bastards, the dying art of the film theater, NOLA’s sissy bounce music scene, and dedicated dads who are also dedicated footballers!
SHORTS DRAMA A masterful program of short dramatic works, each one a standout – featuring Kris Swanberg’s BABY MARY - tale of a stolen toddler, Madeleine Parker’s FRUIT - an intense brothel conversation between a newcomer and an old pro, Catherine Licata’s HOUSE KEEPING - a disturbing tale of a babysitter who might be too attached to her employers, Lisa Melodia’s BIG GIRL - the story of a young child who has to face a very adult day, and Annie Silverstein’s Cannes-bound drama SKUNK - concerning a teenage girl who takes exception to a local skate rat stealing her dog.
SHORTS DURING LAUGHTER COMES TEARS Sometimes you gotta laugh away the tears and sometimes you laugh until you cry. Either way you’re covered with this program. The painful humor of RAT PACK RAT, the awkward sexuality of CHOCOLATE HEART, the wildly inappropriate marketing of CRUISING ELECTRIC, the embarrassing antics of SHAWNSEY’S REVENGE, the tricky situation of WHIFFED OUT, the unpleasant voyeurism suffered by the victims of PEEPERS, the geriatric revenge plot of WAITING FOR BERTA, the unnerving lack of cell phone coverage in FUNNEL or the clumsy robbery of an anti-social alcoholic in VING RHAMES.
FASTER, WTF SHORTS! KILL! KILL! A skull fuckery of decapitation sex, wall vaginas, puke music, boner boxing, a door-to-door devil, a horny septuagenarian super hero, gross sushi and standardized tests!
SHORTS INTERNATIONAL Breathtaking short cinema from around the world. A tale of two young lovers searching Tehran for medical help after an incident leaves the girl ill, the story of estranged father and daughter reconnecting at a sheep farm in Ireland, a driver’s lust for his young employer in Mexico, and a manipulative young girl’s bad behavior at her grandparents home in a provincial German village.
SHORTS NARRATIVE A brilliant collection of shorts that tell a variety of stories, and cover a vast array of style and tone. Frances Bodomos imaginative take on the Zambian space program, Christopher Radcliff’s dark and mysterious tale of a young boy visited by his long-lost brother, Zach Wechter’s snappy neo-noir, Eleanor Wilson’s touching tale of a young couple’s attempts to work past a shared tragedy, and Jeremy Robbins’ brutal tale of survival in a post-apocalyptic world are all fodder for these outstanding shorts.
And of course there’s so much more. Eric covers many of the other choice picks of the fest. Unforgettable films like ART AND CRAFT, KUMIKO, THE TREASURE HUNTER, THE MEND, FAULTS and WHO TOOK JOHNNY, are still tumbling around in my head months after seeing them for the first time. With so much amazing work to see in 5 days, I don’t envy anyone trying to put together a schedule that encompasses all this great stuff!
Historically, Baltimore has had two cultural rites of spring - two festivals that remind us that it's time to get outside and enjoy the pleasantness of the Land of Pleasant Living. There's the Sowebo Arts And Music Festival (this year it takes place on Sunday, May 25). But before that takes place, typically the Powwow would happen.
For 26 years, the Powwow occurred in a small shot of waterfront land called Ferry Bar Park, now located behind the Port Covington Wal-Mart. However, after last year'spolice shutdown of the festival (for a lack of permits, as well as other non-legal behavior), the future of this "alternative" gathering came into question.
Yesterday, May 4 was the proposed date for the 27th Annual Powwow, but it was pretty clear early on that the city would be denying organizers permits.
According to a post by an admin on their Facebook page:
Well the one park permit office blamed delays on the "Mayor's Office of Emergency Management" who has stated that their "directives come from the highest levels of city government" so then I emailed the 11th District Council Person (who, how nice, will be on vacation that weekend Sunday May 4th which is our proposed date) who states that we will not be getting them although nothing formal has been sent to me.
This April 15, 2014 post lead to the creation of an online petition to try to pressure the city into giving up the needed permits. Organizers were looking to get 1,000 signatures which they easily could have come close to if all of the 979 people who "like" their Facebook page signed the petition. Unfortunately for the Powwow, they didn't. By the May 4 date of when the festival was supposed to occur, the petition had fallen well short of its goal - hitting only the 170 mark.
This left organizers to call for friends to go to the park for an informal picnic. No bands. No balloons of nitrous. Just a small, gathering of "a kind of people", I guess?
We cannot be afraid...it is really them being afraid of the new way (which yes has always been the way for some of us) but there (in theory) should be nothing wrong with anyone going to a public park...they are not trying to stop a festival...they are trying to stop a kind of people...be there and picnic with us and spread love and show them this is timeless and about community and they can take anything they want away except for our spirit (lol and our right to go to a public park on our own accord!)
Did that happen? There's no indication on the festival's Facebook page.
Regardless, at this point, it seems the city is determined to kill the Powwow and that organizers and attendees have been unable to dissuade city leaders from doing so.
So what are you to do if you don’t like the current slate of mid-season and spring premiers that the major and cable networks unveiled as the fall and winter watching season wound down? You are all caught up on Game of Thrones and Mad Men and you need to wait each week for a new episode. You are looking to fill you other 28 viewing hours a week but you’ve blown through your Netflix queue, and need something to binge watch. Let me suggested turning your eyes to international TV. No, "international" is not a code word for British. I’m going to suggest you set you sights on France and New Zealand.
Les Revenants (The Returned) ABC recently started airing Resurrection, a show about people that have been dead for years coming back to life with no knowledge of their deaths or how much time has passed. Although the Wikipedia page for this show says it not based upon it’s French counterpart Les Revenants (or The Returned), many of the characters and storylines are similar. If you have been unfortunate enough to see the ABC show do not let the network’s lackluster attempt at telling this story turn you away from Les Revenants.
Although the shows have a similar premise they are based on different source material. Resurrection is based upon Jason Mott’s book The Returned, whereas Les Revenants is the TV adaptation of the French film by the same name. Everything ABC gets wrong Fabrice Gobert, the creator of Les Revenants, gets right.
Les Revenants focuses on a small town in the French Alps where the dead are coming back to life. Unlike most zombie stories these undead are not decaying mindless monsters looking to devour the living. The undead in this story are lost souls looking to pick up where they left off and can’t understand why their loved ones are scared of them.
While watching the short eight episode first season I was reminded of LOST and Twin Peaks. Like LOST, it’s a show that has you theorizing and asking questions, and as each question is answered a new one arises. Also like LOST, each episode tells the story of one character interspersing backstory with a present day timeline. Like Twin Peaks, the tone is strange and eerie and the backdrop is a mountain town where everyone has their secrets. LOST and Twin Peaks are two shows that fall on the opposite sides of a seriousness spectrum, LOST having taken itself too serious and Twin Peaks relying heavily on camp, Les Revenants falls somewhere in between the two.
This show explores the themes of moral ambiguity and the meaning of life without ever being heavy-handed. It’s part horror, science fiction, psychological drama, and mystery. The acting is spot on, the cinematography is gorgeous, and Scottish post-rock band Mogwai wrote the soundtrack. Those three things should be enough reason for you to head over to Netflix now and start a marathon viewing session.
Top of the Lake Last year, New Zealand brought us another drama about a small mountain town whose inhabitants are also full of secrets. Top of the Lake, billed as a miniseries, aired last spring on The Sundance Channel. It tells the story of Detective Robin Griffin’s, played by Mad Men’s Elizabeth Moss, investigation into the sexual assault and disappearance of twelve-year-old Tui, played by newcomer Jacqueline Joe. Unlike Les Revenants, this show falls nowhere near science fiction or horror. This is straight up crime procedural that, unlike many American shows of the same genre, sets a dark and moody tone. It’s this tone that allows an all-too-familiar tale about violence and what its victims are willing to do to avoid that violence feel fresh.
Originally I avoided this show because of my skepticism at Moss’ ability to use a New Zealand accent effectively, which now seems silly because it sounds no different from her native New Zealander castmates. Adding to the star power of the show is Holly Hunter who delivers performance so well-done that I didn’t realize it was her until the second episode. I have only seen a few episodes to Top Of The Lake, but I’m anxious to see where the story will end up and what secrets will be reveled.
*Les Revenants will return to The Sundance Channel in late 2014 for its second season and Carlton Cuse, LOST producer, is currently developing an English language adaptation for A&E.
*Top of the Lake is available to stream on Netflix.
AQUARIUS: Reply hazy, try again. PISCES: You may rely on it. ARIES: Cannot predict now. TAURUS: Cannot predict now. GEMINI: Ask again later. CANCER: Outlook good. LEO: As I see it yes. VIRGO: You may rely on it. LIBRA: You may rely on it. SCORPIO: Better not tell you now. SAGITTARIUS: Most likely. CAPRICORN: Reply hazy, try again.