The Comedians of Comedy directed by Patton Oswalt
Year of release 2005, Running time 104 minutes, Not Rated
Warning: FILTHY, but deliciously, hilariously, brilliantly so. Patton Oswalt wanted to make a film about his kind of stand-up comic -- edgy, nerdy, pop culture junkies equally filled with juvenile scatology and wizened cynicism. Great behind-the-scenes footage shows their personal interactions to be every bit as funny as their comedy routines. A bonus concert of Oswalt, Brian Posehn, and Maria Bamford is icing on the cake. Highly recommended for fans of The Aristocrats, George Carlin, and humor. 5/6/08

Dan in Real Life directed by Peter Hedges
Year of release 2007, Running time 98 minutes, PG-13 (for some innuendo)
Peter (Pieces of April) Hedges delivers another sweet and quirky film filled with three dimensional characters. Dan (Steve Carrell) is an advice columnist admired for his centered and uplifting words for the lovelorn. Ironically, he is lonely and unable to connect with anyone. En route to a family gathering, he falls for Marie (Juliette Binoche). Little does he know, Marie is on her way there as well...as the girlfriend of Dan's brother. A sensitive soundtrack by Norwegian indie darling Sondre Lerche and engaging making-of featurettes round out this unusually charming and intelligent romantic comedy. 4/21/08

Where Danger Lives / Tension directed by John Farrow / John Berry
Year of release 1950/1949, Running time 91/80 minutes, Not Rated
This incredibly tight and entertaining double feature contains all of the best elements of Film Noir. Dark, heavy, awful things crashing into a poor schmuck's world, crackerjack dialogue, and everybody's got an angle (especially the genius cinematographers)...all creating an atmosphere of tension and danger. Not the best (look for Touch of Evil or Double Indemnity), but compulsively watchable examples from a genre that virtually guarantees quality. 4/7/08

The Corporation directed by Mark Achbar
Year of release 2004, Running time 145 minutes, Not Rated
In this well-crafted and eye-opening expose on the governing body that the corporation has become, director Mark Achbar poses a very interesting argument. Along with help from Michael Moore, Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Milton Friedman, and others he attempts to convince the viewer that this institution exhibits all the major attributes of a criminal. 3/31/08

Too Much Too Late by Marc Spitz
A guilty pleasure for the Lester Bangs/Chuck Klosterman-style music geek inside every one of us. Sandy Klein's band The Jane Ashers didn't make it the first time around. Twenty years later they reunite and blow up due to a taste-making blogger. Wry, fun, and very much for those inside on the rock and roll joke. 3/24/2008

The Long, Hot Summer directed by Martin Ritt
Year of release 1958, Running time 115 minutes, Not Rated
In this actor's field day, "Big daddy" Orson Welles clashes with young con-man Paul Newman in this adaptation of William Faulkner's scorching novel of inflamed passions clashing with Southern mores. 3/17/08

Music from the Original Motion Picture Juno by various artists
Year of release 2007
Unlike most soundtracks, JUNO holds up to repeated listens. A collection of tunes every bit as Twee (a 90's college rock movement), sweet, and endearing as the film they were attached to. 3/10/08

The Lives of Others directed by Florian Henckel Von Donnersmark
Year of release 2006, Running time 138 minutes, Rating R
1984, East Berlin. A playwright is investigated for subversion when a Stasi (secret policeman) head falls for his beautiful actress girlfriend. This sophisticated German film explores voyeurism, loyalty, and choice when the Stasi assigned to the case has a crisis of faith. The 2006 Academy Award winner for best foreign language film is not only great cinema, but also a briskly enjoyable thriller. Highest recommendation. 3/3/08

On the Riviera directed by Walter Lang
Year of release 1952, Running time 89 minutes, Not Rated
Danny Kaye earned a Golden Globe award for best comedy/musical actor in a dual role as nightclub entertainer Jack Martin and philandering entrepreneur Henri Duran. The technicolor, Gene Tierney, and lavish Riviera sets are beautiful. But this film's story of mistaken identity and impersonation is secondary to the disarmingly talented Kaye performing a variety of dazzling and often surprisingly low-key musical numbers. 2/19/08

Gigantic: A Tale of Two Johns directed by AJ Schnack
Year of release 2003, Running time 102 minutes, Not Rated
This incredibly enjoyable documentary on college radio punk comedy duo They Might Be Giants relates the story from their 80's beginnings and the legendary Dial-A-Song answering machine service to their recent acclaim from Sarah Vowell, Ira Glass, Dave Eggers, and even a few individuals who have no connection to National Public Radio. 2/12/08

Kiss Me Stupid directed by Billy Wilder
Year of release 1964, Running time 126 minutes, Not Rated
Master studio director Billy Wilder (Double Indemnity, The Apartment, Sunset Boulevard, Ace in the Hole) at his wildest! World-renowned singer Dino (Dean Martin) passes through Climax, Nevada and alights upon two aspiring songwriters. When one of the men learns that his wife is the ex-president of the Dino fan club, he hires a replacement wife. Incredibly funny, light years ahead of its time. Highest recommendation. 2/4/08

49 Up directed by Michael Apted
Year of release 2006, Running time 134 minutes, Not Rated
Using the precept, "Give me the child until he is seven and I will give you the man," Michael Apted's groundbreaking documentary series started examining the lives of 14 people every seven years from the ages of 7 forward. Each installment contains all the stuff of life: comedy, tragedy, pathos, struggle, victory. Watch this one first and then revisit the preceding 6 volumes for a fuller view of not only these fascinating peoples' lives, but an examination of what it is to live in the modern era. 1/28/08
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Bryter Layter by Nick Drake
Year of release 1971
Think you don't like folk? Wispy-voiced bleeding sleeve Drake will change your mind on this, his second album of genre-defining folk rock. Listen for the Velvet Underground's John Cale and the underrated Fairport Convention rounding out this subtle, gorgeous album. 1/21/08
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Jumpin' & Jivin' Volume 1 by Various Artists
Year of release 2007, Running time 85 minutes, Not Rated
You may be familiar with Cab Calloway's "Hi-de-ho" or Dizzie Gillespie's "Oop Bop Sh Bam." Some fans may have sought out Fats Waller in the film "Stormy Weather;" but nothing can prepare for the pure joy contained in these 27 rare jazz and early rock shorts, from established geniuses (Duke Ellington, Artie Shaw) to faded icons (Teddy Powell, The Delta Rhythm Boys). Many made in the 40's and 50's for "soundie" machines, the visual jukeboxes of that era, or placed before films - whatever their original intent, this DVD makes not only for nostalgia, but for an eye-opening glimpse into the masters of a wildly vibrant, but nearly forgotten, era. 1/14/08
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Le Million directed by Rene Clair
Year of release 1931, Running time 81 minutes, Not Rated
Avant-garde and accessible all at once, Le Million is a hidden gem in early film history. Director Rene Clair's masterpiece zips and zings, from surrealistic Dadaist sets to completely sung dialog, from a punchy lost lottery ticket premise to a chase scene right out of (and before) the Marx Brothers. A hugely influential, but forgotten, film that not only deserves to be seen, but is also a hell of a lot of fun to watch. 1/7/08
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The Lookout directed by Scott Frank
Year of release 2006, Running time 99 minutes, Rating R
A tightly-directed and satisfying thriller filled with suspense, strong performances, believable dialogue, and a highly unusual plot, The Lookout whizzes by at a getaway clip. A high school hockey star's bright future has faded after an auto crash robbed him of much of his functionality. Now, a night janitor at a bank, will he fall prey to a con man's promises of sex and money or stay on the straight and narrow? 12/17/07
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Flirting directed by John Duigan
Year of release 1991, Running time 99 minutes, Rating R
A charmingly witty and tight Australian coming-of-age-story, this one has acheieved something of a minor cult status. Boys' school social misfit Danny, and Thandiwe from a nearby girl's school, fall in love. Everyone tries to stop this affair, including Nicole Kidman in perhaps her most unselfconscious performance as the girl's school leader Nicola. 12/10/07
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It Happened One Night directed by Frank Capra
Year of release 1934, Running time 105 minutes, Rating G
text: An example of art and fun blending perfectly in Hollywood's golden age. It's life and love on the open road as a young Clark Gable and the gorgeous and gifted Claudette Colbert meet one fateful night. Rancor becomes romance in this genre defining screwball comedy which won best picture, actor, actress, director, and screenplay awards for 1934. 12/3/07
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Beginning of the End directed by Bert I. Gordon
Year of release 1957, Running time 73 minutes, Not Rated
"You can't drop an atomic bomb on Chicago!" says steel-jawed Peter Graves as a two-fisted scientist doing battle against giant locusts intent on destroying the windy city. Fast-paced, extremely entertaining, earnestly acted, and campy...altogether, great fun from the master of these kinds of movies (Village of Giants, Earth vs. the Spider). 11/26/07
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Birth of the Hot by Jelly Roll Morton
Year of release 1926-1927, Running time 60 minutes
Truly a bridge between the birth of jazz from the days of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band and Duke Ellington's later sophistication, Morton's Hot Peppers sides represent this innovative bandleader and pianist's pinnacle. Wildly inventive, this also makes what by today's standards are certainly primitive recordings charming and fresh. 11/19/07
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The Whole Story and Other Stories by Ali Smith
A dozen avant-garde stories with a character as decidedly magical as it is British. In just one story, perspectives shift from that of a fly on the wall (literally) to a bookseller, to a bookbuyer, to a woman compelled to create a boat out of secondhand copies of the Great Gatsby. What if your lover fell in love with a tree? Hear both sides of the story! Why are those randy bagpipers following you everywhere? As they run amok through the Underground to blank stares and yawns, it becomes clear that this thrillingly strange book works on a viable internal logic not to simply validate each story, but to underscore the underappreciated magic all around us. Highly recommended. 11/12/07
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Broadway Melody of 1940 directed by Norman Taurog
Year of release 1940, Running time 102 minutes, Rating G
Backstage drama about two hoofers reaching for the big time. A case of mistaken identity has Johnny Brett (Fred Astaire) losing the role of a lifetime opposite Clare Bennett (Eleanor Powell), to his partner. The story takes backseat to the only pairing of two of Hollywood's best dancers through stunning sequences, including I've Got My Eyes On You and the finale Begin the Beguine featuring a 6500 square foot mirror floor! 11/5/07
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To the Land of the Cattails by Aron Appelfeld
Not for fans of happy endings, Isreali Aron (aka Aharon) Appelfeld takes us to 1939 Austria. A Jewish woman and her half-gentile son voyage across Europe to visit the wistful place of her childhood, the land of the cattails. Along the way, Appelfeld poetically evokes tension by depicting a world suddenly rife with senseless cruelty, made even more poignant as we witness her son's slow descent into loutishness. 10/29/07
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Uglies by Scott Westerfield
"Is it not good to make a society full of beautiful people?" Recently posed in the New York Times, this pertinent question forms the core and weight of a fast-paced dystopian adventure. On the eve of her transformation to the "Pretty" everyone becomes at 16, a young woman begins to learn that there is more than meets the eye in this thrilling read that will leave all readers (from 4th grade up) wondering what we sacrifice for societal ideals of beauty. 10/22/07
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The Marrying Kind directed by Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin
Year of release 1952, Running time 92 minutes, Rating PG
Much like Marty (which the Library also owns), The Marrying Kind is a punchy blend of comedy, drama, and tragedy in the lives of ordinary people. Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin's screenplay relating the warring newlyweds' tale couldn't be tighter. Judy Holliday (fresh off Adam's Rib and Born Yesterday's success) and her male counterpart, newcomer Aldo Ray, are charmingly authentic as they bicker in thick Brooklyn-ese. A perfect film about the little people and an overlooked achievement from the amazing George Cukor Garson Kanin team. 10/15/07
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The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
This is simply the best audiobook I have ever listened to. Dylan Baker won awards for this because he inhabits the world of the Joads in a restrained, unpretentious manner; imagine the film adaptation's Henry Fonda, only with a full range of characters and the ending intact. Unabridged, every word of this Pulitzer Prize winner is delivered with true reverence for a work that will forever resound with poignancy for the American struggle. Perhaps the best way to tackle these 600+ pages if, like me, you never thought you'd read it as well! 10/8/07
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I Thought My Father Was God and other true tales from NPR's National Story Project edited by Paul Auster
A collection of stories originally aired on NPR's National Story Project, Paul Auster's only criteria were that they had to be interesting and true. From the first page, which details a chicken knocking on and entering the door of an ordinary house to tales of triumph, tragedy, and the mundane, this book runs the gamut of human experience. What else could one ask for: fun, deep, wonderful, from all ages, backgrounds, and walks of life, endlessly entertaining over all 180 stories. 10/1/07
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Paul Moves Out by Michel Rabagliati
A true coming of age graphic novel focusing on the little moments in an easygoing iconic style reminiscent of New Yorker cartoons, Tintin, Peanuts, and basically everything that makes comics able to deal with the grand issues and be accessible at the same time. Heartwarming, artful, meditative, recommended for 13 up. See also Paul Has a Summer Job. 9/24/07
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Carnegie Hall Concert by Buck Owens
Year of release 1966
You may know "Act Naturally" from the Beatles cover, but every one of his songs from this period are that good. A loose performance featuring brilliant renditions and truly humorous asides from a group that obviously loves to play together puts this one up there with the best live country albums of all time. 9/17/07
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The Stooges by The Stooges
Protopunk's sounding call (rather: gut-splitting wail) and first of three remarkable albums by Iggy (Iggy Pop) Stooge and his band of trogolodytes was garage rock at its rawest and finest---and punk long before there was such a thing. Produced in 1969 by the inimitable John Cale (of VU), this trailblazer remains fresh, raw, racous...a compelling and exciting listen. 9/10/07
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The Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Kim Deitch
History is written by the winners. It is also the story of the little people and Kim Deitch's lavish graphic novel is emblematic of animation's rise and fall, from Winsor McCay's heady early vaudeville-style performances to the increasing bowdlerization of successive years. The Boulevard of Broken Dreams succeeds as a baroque work of the true Underground Comix style (think 1960's counterculture, cross-hatched lines, talking pianos, R. Crumb, etc.) and a down to earth tale emphasizing the glory and tragedy of the architects of a form who tried to wield art over commerce. 9/4/07
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Pure Ella by Ella Fitzgerald
Year of release 1954
Just beautiful. Ella and piano, with nothing to detract from her voice at its best on Gershwin's best (and a few more 4 years later, including Stardust). After moderate big band success and just before the songbooks would catapult her into the public eye, we find Ella swinging with crystal voice -sans schmaltz- at a time when she was hungry. 8/6/07
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The Bright Forever by Lee Martin
For fans of The Lovely Bones and Crow Lake, this page turner relates a small town murder from all points of view and perspectives. Subtle and affecting, this isn't just a book that you'll read quickly, but one that will stick with you for a good, long while. 7/2/07
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Whatever People Say I am, That's What I'm Not by Arctic Monkeys
Every so often a British group debuts with punk-rock abandon, entitled individualism, innovation, and sheer velocity. The Beatles used what they wanted and then thumbed their collective nose to all preceeding rock with Please Please Me. Since then other British bubbles have popped; Supergrass's excellent I Should Coco (which the Oak Park Public Library also owns) springs to mind. Arctic Monkeys have once again given the teen in all of us reason to pump a fist or 2--whether in collegial attitude or simple rocking-out, this is gleefully snotty Britpop and a wicked debut. 6/5/07
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Pocket Symphony by Air
Innovation paired with precise production and a refusal to discard old sounds has encouraged Beatles comparisions. The French electronic duo gets more sophisticated with each outing, Pocket Symphony shimmering with layers of sonic pleasure--a delight for either headphone scrutiny or simple ambience.5/1/07
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