W Obama

This W Obama video is definately cool:

Cimitero senza croci

Original Title: Un Corde, un Colt

Director: Robert Hossein

Year: 1968

This one is sort of borderline. It has a lot going for it: great music, creative cinematography, lots of spurs jingling, some great gun fights, and Hossein, who both stars in and directs it, seems to have a good grip on the mechanics of a proper western. In places however it seems to try a bit too hard (such as a five minute scene where no one says a word and a dramatic Spanish guitar is playing-but not much is really happening-a lot of tension for a scene that is not really all that tense). I watched it in Italian, though the original was French (an Italo-French production actually).

Anyhow this is an OK film. It is not great though, despite what some might say.

Le Fantastique de Fétichistes

A new book called Le Fantastique de Fétichistes is available for pre-order here.

It is edited by Estelle Valls de Gomis and has I think three short stories of mine from the Metrophilia series translated into French. I haven’t seen the TOC, but it does include J.K. Huysmans and Joséphin Péladan, so I am sure it is a cool book.

 

Carthage

My story Carthage, is up here at Pequin.org.

Comments on recently seen films

The Assassination of Jesse James: What a bore! I am amazed that this film received praise. It is basically like a two and half hour long re-enactment that could have been done for the History Channel. All the characters are stupid and talk with hillbilly accents.

Sleuth: This one is good. Very clever script and good acting. If it has any real fault, it is that it is a bit too clever.

The Band’s Visit: A great Israeli film about an Egyptian police band that gets stuck in a small Israeli town for a night. Definitely worth seeing.     

Per 100,000 dollari ti ammazzo

Director: Giovanni Fago

Year: 1967 

A deep organ. Desert scene. Trumpets. A western that, if not great, comes quite close.

Though the credits give made-up American names to most of the actors and the director (who is billed as Sidney Lean), the cast on this one is strictly European, staring the great Gianni Garko as Johnny Forrest and Claudio Comaso as his evil brother Clint. Comaso, it must be said, plays an excellent villain, and there is something about him that is truly repulsive. Though not as famous as his brother Gian Maria Volontà, this actor is almost as interesting.

There is lots of great scenery, sweat dripping from faces and plenty of guns going off—as well as some really beautiful horses. Another interesting feature is how dirty Garko appears throughout the film. His jacket is always covered in dust and in the final scene his face is completely covered with sweat, dirt and blood as a strong wind whips hay around what I guess is supposed to be Albuquerque.

The score on this one is really striking, though I am not exactly sure who is responsible for it.

Giovanni Fago has not done all that much as a director, but from what I have seen of his work, he is quite remarkable. This film and the really odd O’ Cangaçeiro make him worthy of a great deal of respect.

Highly recommended.

Health care plans: Clinton, Obama

Ok, a lot is made about Universal Healthcare. It sounds good. It would be good. But….

I live in Switzerland, and here we have a plan very much like that proposed by Clinton. I can tell you first hand, that it is not all that wonderful. In the past six years I have paid much more in health insurance than the benefits I have received. And that is including a good number of doctor’s visits, medicine, and even an operation.

Rich and poor both pay the same. There is really no equality. There are subsidies, but only for the very, very poor. There are caps, but there are also minimum amounts that the insurance companies cannot charge beneath.

I am all for everyone having health insurance, but it should be something that is government issued. Otherwise the ones who benefit are the health insurance companies.

Her plan on the surface seems more appealing, but in reality I think Obama’s is better.

Just for a note: I voted for Mr. Edwards . . .