My favourite thing to read while travelling is The Paris Review. It has like full-spectrum literature that’s perfect for reading while getting slightly drunk on airplanes.
So I just bought a whole stack of old issues from the sixties, seventies and eighties. You can still get them pretty cheap from sources on the interwebs.
Man, look at those covers. Makes me want the next holiday to happen now.
NOW!
Very metal. 
I finally went through the curiosly divisioned (is that a word?) “Spanish/South American/African” shelves at the video store.
As suspected, it was 87% Spanish, 22% Mexican and 13% “other”. (Lots of copro-ductions.) I only found two films from countries previously not covered (of which this is one), so it’s getting really difficult to just stumble onto films now. I guess everything will have to be shopped via the Intertubes from now one.
Anyway anyway, yet another interesting film from South America: Still the part of the world with the highest good to bad ratio. Good actors, too. The fat kid is really convincing as an asshole.
It’s a really sweet film.
Holiday. Diego Araujo. 2014. Ecuador.
Canalazo
Heat sugar and water until dissolved. Add the rest and heat, but do not boil. Pour into a cup (without taking the cinnamon sticks out) and add garnish.
This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.
*gasp* Norway!
Such a frustrating film.
There are long stretches here of pure bewildering genius where I’m going THIS IS THE BEST FILM EVER.
And then there are scenes where it all falls flat and I’m all “perhaps this would have worked with better actors or lines or a better director or SOMETHING”.
It’s written by the guy who directed the brilliant film shot in my flat, but that’s totally not influencing my view of this film whatsoever.
There are several really funny scenes in here, and lots of original touches, but the middle section really drags.
Loved the ending.
Rerun. Joachim Trier. 2006. Norway.
Mountain Stream
Fill a glass with ice and add all ingredients, except the Sprite, to the glass. Stir. Then add Sprite.
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This is a documentary (I think… or is it!?) filmed in the Central African Republic, but it’s really more a US/German film than anything else.
Most of the dialogue is in English, but the DVD is subtitled in German only. So when the people who are speaking the language people in Ködörösêse tî Bêafrîka use, I have to read and understand the German subtitles.
“- Versager! Arschloch! Schwanz!” I understand German! Wow!
It’s a fascinating and strange film. Beautifully shot.
Song from the Forest. Michael Obert. 2013. Central African Republic.
Wasp
Stir with ice and top off with the ginger ale.
This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.
I guess Cabo Verde is too small to show up on the map there… Google! Be better!
We’re getting to smaller countries now in this blog series (size-wise or film industry wise (we’re nearly half way)), so the question “is this really a film from ?” is getting slightly more iffy.
IMDB lists this one as a coproduction between “Portugal | Brazil | Cape Verde | France | Belgium”, which makes it like “er”. The director here is from Portugal, but it’s filmed in Cape Verde with plenty of Cape Verdean (is that a word?) actors and stuff, so…
Anyway, this is a very silly film. I didn’t quite get that at the start and thought all the actors were just over-acting like crazy. But it’s an old-fashioned farce and doesn’t really aim at realism. Sort of. It turns all serious towards the end.
It’s amusing. And the structure it has (two timelines connected by a listening to tapes) makes it more interesting.
And I really enjoy listening to Portuguese.
But, still, it’s kinda… off.
Napomuceno’s Will. Francisco Manso. 1997. Cabo Verde.
Coco Punch
Shake with ice and pour, unstrained, into a glass.
This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.