directed by Siu-Tung Ching (1987 and 1991)

The East does weird in a way that the West simply can’t and the fun, crazy Chinese Ghost Story trilogy proves it.

I remember hearing about these films years ago as elusive, cult classics; and with demons, tongue battles (that would be battles fought with giant monster tongues), walking tree spirits, rapping warriors, slapstick beheadings and ghostly seductions, “cult” is the only way to effectively classify these unique films.

The plots are similar between the two: Beautiful ghost spirit is under the control of a tree demon. Kind, handsome traveler stays the night in her haunted temple and falls in love. Must defeat demons to save her.

The original is more romantic and serious, but both include a healthy dose of humor and slapstick–the third almost to the point of tedium. The second… well sadly I can’t tell you anything about it: see, Netflix instant issues dictated a strange viewing order. First I watched what I assumed was the first movie only to find out afterwards that Netflix had mislabeled it and I had actually watched the third. So, not wanting to forgo seeing the original I watched the first movie (which was labeled Part 2 on Netfilx). At that point I thought we might as well finish up the trilogy, but found all three movies were no longer available. So, only reviewing 1 and 3 and no screen captures from me.

It’s a shame they’ve been taken off Netflix because they’re not readily available in the US–but are worth seeking out for lovers of bizarre cinema. I hope to one day see the second installment and complete the trilogy.

See more: Movies 1980s 1990s Chinese Comedy Horror

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Posted on January 21, 2012

Singing Al Green

This is pretty hot stuff.

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Posted on January 20, 2012

by Alan Garner (1973)

A young troubled man in love in the 1970′s, the violent siege of a church during the English civil war, and a berserker and his fellow deserter soldiers during Roman times; the elements of Alan Garner‘s slim but substantial novel Red Shift are interesting even if I had a hard time getting a concrete grasp on them.

It’s a little like reading poetry… You’re thrust into conversations that can be vague and complex, using language and history forgotten and the narrative jumps from one story to another without warning. Rather than always “getting” everything that was on a page, I’d (sometimes after re-reading) get a resonating feeling of what was taking place instead.

It’s not a simple, easy read but it is rewarding. Symbolism is rarely this effective and the bitter, violent themes are haunting.

Jim got this for me after hearing about it on Gawker, so I had no idea what to expect–but even if I had read a summary, it wouldn’t have prepared me for the interesting use of language and ideas here.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about it until I’d finished, and even now it grows more interesting as I look back on it… it’s exciting to be surprised, challenged and rewarded by a book.

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Posted on January 19, 2012

by The Publishers of Phaidon Press (2001)

While I sometimes bemoan the waste of my days of dual incomes and thoughtless spending (where’d it all go??) it’s nice to still reap the benefits.

In particular I have a great collection of beautiful art books and Phaidon’s The House Book is one of my favorites.

It’s a comprehensive but friendly to limited attention spans with large beautiful photographs and brief synopsis of architects and architectural styles.

Heavy hitting household names like Frank Lloyd Wright and Frank Gehry are here as well as less well known masters like Daniel Grataloup and Osamu Ishiyama.

There’s plenty of fodder for dream house building in your mind though it might also make you feel dismayed that our country is such a wasteland of cookue cutter blandness.

See more: Books 2000s Architecture Coffe Table Book Reference

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Posted on January 18, 2012

by Debra Law (1981)

Debra Laws’ Very Special sounds like young girls’ smiles when they first fall in love . It’s a very nice thing.

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Posted on January 18, 2012

dedicated to 80′s horror on film and on the almighty nes

I’m sure there’s an scathing essay to be written about how what I am about to say could be a symbol of the decline of civilization, but an animated gif of Johnny Depp being sucked into a bed followed by a fountain of blood is a very nostalgic image of my childhood.

What can I say, I was a horror buff pretty much right from the beginning. I couldn’t wait to watch movies I spied in the blood splattered section in the video store. (I also vividly remember seeing a curtained off area with rated X movies, and thought to myself “How scary can a movie be to be X rated??”)

I feel like horror geek kids don’t quite exist in the same way anymore. Remember the kid in Salem’s Lot who’s obsessed with monsters? He and all like him have grown up, and instead of nerdy rooms packed with Fangorias, we have tumblrs like F— Yeah 8 Bit Horror to view, share and remember our favorite gorey moments in cinema.

The site focuses on the golden age of horror, the 1980′s. There’s lot of stuff from the Nightmare on Elm Street series (which is fine with me, since making Elm St. movies was what I wanted to do when I grew up for years). There are also a few I haven’t seen (Trick or Treat looks like a must see).

A great example of a good tumblr.

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Posted on January 15, 2012

138 N 8th St, Brooklyn

Betto didn’t arrive to the crowded Williamsburg restaurant scene with a lot of hoopla but it’s made a huge impression on myself and friends.

The food is pretty much spectacular and not outrageously priced.

For starters, the flatbread with roasted garlic was really something else. Magic happens when garlic is roasted (reminding me it’s something i should do at home more often) and mixed with warm, fluffy flatbread and a touch of lemon? Well, it was hard to share this one.

The crostinis are also a must order. I opted for a thick gooey chicken liver but the options are vast.

Salad wise, brussel sprouts were great, sun chokes were good but a bit dull in comparison with other dishes.

Main dishes are incouraged to be shared but we found they worked better as individual l dishes (trading bites of course!).

I loved my spicy chicken that was bursting with flavor but my friends spaghetti dishes were deliciously comforting and the calamari was tender and well spiced.

We finished with a nice cheese plate and a decadent chocolate dessert that could only be described as thick chocolate paste. Delicious but one to share with many.

The only complaint was that it was unreasonably chilly but otherwise the atmosphere is inviting and the food perfect. Can’t wait to return.

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Posted on January 13, 2012

Link to Your Dress in the Comments

Sure, it’s just the stupid Golden Globes, but choosing a dress is still fun.

Was thinking something young and short and the first look that popped in my head was Louis Vuitton’s iceprincess mini from Spring. Yes, with a little beehive this will do just fine.

Leave a link to your outfit in the comments.

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Posted on January 12, 2012