Jeff Pophistory

The Trip (Missed Movies)

Taking a road trip with a good buddy is bound to have two results: (1) your friend will get on your nerves; and (2) you will laugh more than you do at almost any other time in your life. Traveling through unfamiliar lands while spending 24/7 with another person forces you to bond with your travel companion in ways that would never happen in your regular life. The Trip (2010), like a real buddy road trip, contains very little plot but captures what a real-life adventure is like.

The Trip, originally conceived as British TV series, stars British actors Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon playing fictionalized versions of themselves as they set out on a road trip to northern England. After a newspaper asks Coogan to go on a journey to visit and review fancy restaurants and his girlfriend decides not to go on the trip with him, he ends up traveling with Brydon. The two drive, eat, talk, bicker, do impressions, quote Wordsworth and Coleridge, annoy each other, and laugh together on the trip. One of the highlights of the movie Tristram Shandy – A Cock and Bull Story was the interaction between Coogan and Brydon, so it was great to see them together as a version of themselves here.

While a similarly themed buddy-travel-movie Sideways focused on telling a story, The Trip focuses less on plot and more on capturing the real-life experience of traveling with someone you like but who also annoys you at times. There is a story about the contrast between Brydon’s life and Coogan’s more successful career balanced by womanizing loneliness. And there are beautiful shots of food being prepared and served. But the main point of the movie is the interaction between Coogan and Brydon, often improvised, and the way they try to one-up the other and get the other to laugh. One of the highlights of the film is their impressions, including their discussion of how to imitate actor Michael Caine.

Years ago, I took a long road trip through the Western U.S. with a high school friend, and I kept thinking of that trip while watching The Trip. On my trip, my friend kept trying to explain everything we saw, showing off his knowledge. When I told him to stop, he kept insisting that he was not constantly explaining things. But then at one tourist site, I turned around and saw him explaining the actions of local animals to a few other tourists. When I caught his eye, it was a moment of amusement to both of us, and a moment of realization to him. In The Trip, there is a similar scene where after Bryson complains about Coogan acting like he knows everything, Coogan goes off and encounters another know-it-all.

Conclusion? For me, The Trip realistically captures the adventures, aggravations, and joys of traveling with a friend. If you are looking for a movie with a compelling story or well-plotted laugh lines, you should choose another movie. But if you are in the mood for a lazy aimless trip with a couple of annoying companions who will make you laugh, then check out The Trip, which is now available on DVD.

{Missed Movies is our continuing series on good films you might have missed because they did not receive the recognition they deserved when released.}

Don’t Miss “Philomena” (Short Review)

A Crazy Violent Act and A Very Good Film (“The Dark Knight Rises”)

The Dark Knight Rises . . . In Legos

New Music from Ryan Adams and The Jayhawks

When I read that the Americana Music Association recently gave the Artist of the Year Award to Buddy Miller, I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, I love Buddy Miller’s work as well as his new CD, so I am always glad to see him get the recognition he deserves. On the other hand, I did not even know there were Americana Music Association Awards, and I wondered what is the status of Americana music — or alt-country — two decades after writers started using the terminology to describe a type of music. There is a lot that may be said, and Chimesfreedom may revisit the topic in the future. For now, one answer is provided in new releases by two giants of the field, Ryan Adams and The Jayhawks.

Mockingbird Time (2011) by The Jayhawks: The new CD by the Jayhawks created much excitement with the return of Mark Olson to the band for the first recording since the classic Tomorrow the Green Grass (1995). I was excited too, but in looking through my CD collection, I was surprised to learn that I had not missed a CD from the band’s catalog, and that I do love all of the albums, including the ones without Olson where Gary Louris continued to lead the band in interesting directions.

I have been listening to the new CD for several weeks because it often takes many listens before I know how much I like a new album. The new CD does capture some of the magic of Tomorrow the Green Grass, although I have yet to fall in love with the new music as much as I did with some of the songs on the 1995 album. For me, the new album does not exceed the Olson-less Smile and Sound Of Lies, but I realize that many fans prefer this version of the band. Give it a chance. “Closer to Your Side” is one of the highlights of the new album:

Ashes & Fire by Ryan Adams: Like The Jayhawks CD, a new Ryan Adams CD has to compete with a back catalog of great albums and music. When I first heard Heartbreaker (2000) and Gold (2001), I immediately fell in love with the albums and could not stop hitting the replay button. I had a similar reaction to his work with Whiskeytown. Ashes & Fire, Adams’s latest effort, did not immediately grab me like those albums, but it is a solid effort with some great (“Lucky Now”) and almost-great (“Ashes & Fire”) songs.

The opening lines of the first song on Ashes & Fire, “Dirty Rain” (““Last time I was here it was raining / It isn’t raining anymore”) even evoke the opening cadence of the superior classic “Oh My Sweet Carolina” from Heartbreaker. I have always been more of a fan of Adams’s country-ish and upbeat songs over his contemplative slow songs (or his digressions into other genres). This new album stays close to alt-country but delves into his slower folk side too. But it continues to grow on me like some of his other albums that started out okay for me but that I later came to love, like Jacksonville City Nights (2005). So I am reserving judgment and plan to enjoy the CD many more times.

Conclusion? Many of the great “alt-country” artists of the last few decades continue to record great work (even if one may classify the music in different categories). If you are a fan of Ryan Adams and/or The Jayhawks, you will like the return to form on their new CDs, which are both solid enjoyable efforts. If you are not familiar with their work, though, you might want to start with some of their other albums. But either way, these new CDs are a fine addition to already fantastic catalogs. For Ryan Adams, who was diagnosed with Ménière’s disease five years ago, the return is especially triumphant.

Bonus Reviews, Because Why Should You Trust Me?: For a detailed mixed review of Ryan Adams’s Ashes & Fire, check out Pitchfork. For a positive review, check out Popmatters. By contrast, Popmatters gave a mixed review to Mockingbird Time by The Jayhawks. Consequence of Sound argues that The Jayhawks almost get it right.

What do you think of the new music from Ryan Adams and The Jayhawks? Leave a comment.

New Ryan Adams Song: “Lucky Now”

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Alaska Bought Today: Anchored in Anchorage

alaska compared to u.s. — “But you know you’re in the largest state in the Union / When you’re anchored down in Anchorage”

On October 18 in 1867, just a little more than two years after the nation ended a Civil War, the United States took control of Alaska. The U.S. had bought the land for 2 cents an acre for a total of $7.2 million.

Seward’s Folly

Secretary of State William Henry Seward pushed for the controversial purchase, so critics dubbed the purchase “Seward’s Folly.” Seward and President Andrew Johnson, who would be impeached a year later, were eventually vindicated in the Alaska deal.

Gold was discovered in Alaska in 1896. And today, after the territory became a state in 1959, the state is a treasure of oil and other natural resources. One other benefit is my favorite song about the state, Michelle Shocked’s “Anchorage,” off her debut album Short Sharp Shocked (1988).

Michelle Shocked’s “Anchorage”

In the song “Anchorage,” a singer who lives in New York City describes how she wrote a letter to her friend in Dallas, but the reply came back from Anchorage, Alaska. The rest of the song recites the letter from Alaska.

In the letter, the friend does not complain about her life in Alaska. Butut in her description, you sense some longing for the life of her big city singer friend.

Leroy got a better job so we moved;
Kevin lost a tooth, he’s started school;
I’ve got a brand new eight month old baby girl;
I sound like a housewife;
Hey ‘Shelle, I think I’m a housewife.

“Anchorage” is a beautiful song about friends and how we end up in places with our lives where we may not have planned. One senses the singer also may think the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence.

Yet, the words and the way the song is sung reflect affection, not envy. If Michelle Shocked, who grew up in East Texas, wrote another song in the form of a letter from New York City back to her old friend in Anchorage, I wonder what she would say.

Shocked’s song gives a voice to someone you might not think about. In the history-book version about adding all that beautiful land to the United States, we often hear about the later gold rush and the building of a new state. But one should not forget the role of all of the regular people, especially including the overlooked women and natives, just getting by day-to-day.

As we have been reminded with events around the world, society is not just the Andrew Johnsons and other politicians. It is also made up of the rockers and the anchored-down folks.

Map illustration via Eric Gaba.

“The Grey” Is Not the Movie You Thought It Was (Missed Movies)

Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop . . . Being a Jerk?

We generally think of Conan O’Brien as the nerdy guy who was a writer for The Simpsons before getting his break as the awkward replacement for David Letterman’s late night show on NBC. We enjoyed rooting for him as his talents developed, leading him to take over the coveted Tonight Show. Then, during NBC’s decision to effectively push O’Brien out of the Tonight Show time slot after its failed experiment with Jay Leno in prime time, we were on the side of the underdog with Team Coco. The documentary, Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop (2011), which follows O’Brien on his post-NBC tour of the U.S. and Canada, shows another side of O’Brien, as a star who is kind of a jerk.

The documentary, now available on DVD and Blue-ray, gives an insider’s look at O’Brien during the tour he put together to keep himself busy during the time where he was prohibited by his NBC settlement from appearing on TV. The movie shows the somewhat slapdash nature of the tour, where the idea was followed by selling tickets before actually putting together a show. Of course, O’Brien and his crew knew he had the talent to put it all together, and the film shows a successful tour that allowed O’Brien to connect with fans from around the country.

The film also shows O’Brien behind the scenes, where in candid discussions, often while he is exhausted, he reveals that underneath the way he ended The Tonight Show in a positive way, he was understandably bitter about the way NBC treated him. O’Brien is also conflicted about his feelings, recognizing that he has been given opportunities and money way above what most people can even dream about, but his feelings are nevertheless honest.

Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop also reveals O’Brien as something besides the happy-go-lucky man portrayed on late night television. He often dishes out barbs and good-natured punches to the people who work with him, knowing that they have to take it all as part of their job without complaint. We also see another side of him as he whines about his exhausting schedule throughout.

To say he is a “jerk” might be too harsh, as the movie really just shows he is human, perhaps with an understandably larger ego than a non-celebrity but probably a lesser ego than most celebrities. There are shining moments, not the least of which is the fact that O’Brien must have approved everything in the film, and he does not hide his warts, which is refreshing. He could have made a glossy movie that only made him look good, but he went for something more honest instead.

O’Brien seems self-aware about the circus that surrounds him, as well as his good fortune. In one scene, apparently in his kitchen at home, he honestly talks about how he uses humor sometimes as a way of criticizing others. We also see that he has genuine relationships with several people besides his family. He never seems condescending to his on-screen pal Andy Richter, and the two genuinely seem to respect each other. Also, his main assistant who is featured in much of the film is a woman who enjoys the exchanges with O’Brien and seems to be one of the few who can stand up to O’Brien.

Conclusion? Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop is an entertaining documentary about a celebrity, revealing a another side of O’Brien’s life and a human side of the man. I’m still on Team Coco.

What did you think of Conan O’Brien in Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop? Leave a comment.

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Dear Zachary (Missed Movies)

Stephen King’s “The Life of Chuck”: A Few Thoughts for Those Who Haven’t Seen the Film . . . and a Few for Those Who Have

Nicolas Cage Shines In Modest But Surprising “Pig” (Short Review)

New Documentary About Guy Clark

“The Staircase” Is a Fascinating Real-Crime Documentary

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The Head and the Heart: Sounds Like Hallelujah

At the recent Emmy Awards, someone came up with the idea to sing Leonard Cohen’s song “Hallelujah” while they showed images of the stars who died during the past year. It was an odd choice, showing that the producers had only listened to the single word of the title without listening to the words of the lyrics. People often comment that Cohen’s song is overplayed. While I have yet to grow tired of it, if you are looking for another outstanding song with “Hallelujah” in the title — or if you are just looking for a great catchy pop song — check out “Sounds Like Hallelujah” by The Head and the Heart.

“Sounds Like Hallelujah” has been on my iPod repeat playlist for more than a year, but I recently noticed that a local station, WFUV, has been playing it fairly often lately. It is a great song, and I cannot get it out of my head. So if your local radio station has not yet played it, give the song a listen.

Like the Leonard Cohen song, “Sounds Like Hallelujah” is not open to simple straightforward interpretation. While the sound is joyous, the lyrics reveal something more complex. One commentator has argued that the song is best understood in the context of the themes of the entire CD, providing an epiphany toward the end of the album.

Momma don’t put no gun in my hand
I don’t wanna end up like these men

I’m not walking away
I’m just hearing what you’re saying
For the first time
Sounds like hallelujah for the first time

“Sounds Like Hallelujah” is off of the band’s self-titled self-released first CD. The band re-recorded the song for a remastered release of the CD this year, which partly explains the increase in airplay. Josiah Johnson and Jonathan Russell formed The Head and the Heart in 2009. The band, which is based in Seattle, includes Charity Rose Thielen, Chris Zasche, Kenny Hensley, and Tyler Williams.

What do you think of The Head and the Heart and “Sounds Like Hallelujah”? What do you think it means? Leave a comment.

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