? It's rare for me to watch a movie and immediately go online to research its symbolism and themes, but The Tin Drum, which is adapted from the 1959 Nobel Prize winning novel by Gunter Grass, is just the kind of sprawling, literary, and complex movie that prompts me to recall terminology from my high school English classes and actually put it to use.

David Bennet (you might recognize him from Legend) is brilliantly cast as Oskar. In fact, he's so brilliantly cast that I cannot imagine the film working at all without him. Oskar, a strange boy with the ability to shatter glass with his screams, is a child of three when he decides to stop growing, finding the world of adults unappealing. With his constant companion, a tin drum, he grows older–through not taller–as an outsider in the increasingly dangerous world of increasingly Nazi dominated independent city of Danzig (which was created by the Treaty of Versailles in 1920, now it's a a part of Poland called Gdansk).

While in some ways this child represents the will of the individual and the potential of one person to change the tune of the world–quite literally: in one scene he manages to transform a Nazi rally into a jazzy dance party by drumming to his own beat–Oskar is far from a hero, or even an anti-hero. Like many artists during the Nazi regime, he never really uses his powers to change anything; he wanders through the horrors of the war with little more than his own needs and wants in mind.

The film, which is far from boring, is frequently surreal and humorous, but definitely not for the squeamish. Frightening and disturbing images abound, particularly in one scene involving eels and a dead horse head. It's also an extremely controversial movie, especially in conservative Canada and America (possesing a copy in Oklahoma City would actually land you in jail for 20 years) where the sex scenes between the twelve year old star and various women (which are implied, but still pretty unsettling to watch) were considered child pornography by some law makers; a high profile hearing followed wherein the film was vindicated.

I haven't read the novel, but it seems like the adaptation omits big parts of the book (post war fame as a jazz drummer, false admission of nun-slaying), which isn't too surprising considering the film is already bursting at the seams (at a 140 minute run time) with stuff to make you think, and it makes a good case for picking up the novel, which is part of Grass's Danzig trilogy. Director Volker Schl?ndorff has created an unforgettable cinematic experience that is as beautiful as it is unnerving. Criterion has released the 1980 Best Foriegn Laungage Film winner with a disc that includes a documentary about the controversy, the screenplay's original un-filmed ending, a rare recording of Gunter Grass reading from the novel, and other Criterion Collection-y goodies.

Driving around in our new (borrowed) car, a Grand Marquis called the Blue Bomber we have been listening to a lot of classical and other public radio options a lot. Without an ipod hook up or a CD player, we're forced to because the alternative, basically any other station, is way too obnoxious and loud. If it's not the dj's making me bang my head against the window, it's the commercials.

Sometimes it makes me feel like an old person, and I wonder if this is how getting old happens to others. Like the other night, did we really enjoy being in middle of a Celtic smooth jams hour? Other times though, it introduces us to new things, well new to us but old to the world things like The John Kirby Sextet.

Billed as “'The Biggest Little Band in the Land” for their rich sound, the group often did amazing covers of classical tunes. Anitra's Dance is a cover of the Edvard Grieg opera based on the Henrik Ibsen play Peer Gynt. Anitra the character is described thus “The Arabic princess Anitra first met Peer Gynt when he was exceedingly rich with the wealth he had won from solving the riddle of the Sphinx. She charmed him, danced for him, cooed him into giving her all of his wealth, and then she told him to scamper off before she sicced Daddy's guards on him.”

This jazzy version would probably make her very happy if, a. she were a real person, and b. she had been around in the late thirties when Kirby (and his then wife singer Maxine Sullivan) had their heyday.

A pop sensation, Falco will forever be remembered for Der Kommissar and Rock Me Amadeus. I was escpailly thrilled as a kid who happened to be a massive fan of the 1984 film, Amadeus (a film I still consider one of the best ever made), by his spectacular, now classic video where he struts as a dapper gentlemen (no one else in the 80s pulled off a tuxedo and slicked back hair so well) and a punked out Mozart.

His fame was short lived, but he was planning a comeback when he was killed in a bus accident at the young age of 41.

I love love love London fashion week. It's always crazier and brighter and quirkier than anywhere else and there's always stuff I covet like a little Gollum. Already, the first day, the tweed, neon, printed, ladylike collection by Luella Bartley has really lifted my spirits and I want every single piece. Even the setting, Hyde Park's Crystal Palace is perfect because nothing makes a neon orange veil pop like a vista of green leaves. Of her daring and amazing color choices she said ” I wanted color, but in a sort of sick way. When I saw it all lined up, I thought, Ew! Can we do this?”

Luella is at British It girl. Her husband is fashion photographer David Sims, Kate Moss and Sienna Miller are her buddies, and she once edited British Vogue (which by the by has a fantastic Karen Elson fiery gold cover this month) with pale blond hair and those adorable whisper eyebrows and freckles that go with it.

She's a bit less known here in the states despite a cute Target collection from a couple years back, but this collection is so stunning that I feel like her fan club can only grow and grow.

Papabubble the world wide cult candy shop that has stores in Tokyo Barcelona, and Amsterdam opened their first American store on Broome Street about a year ago amidst much internet buzz and chat. The artful candy and the bright fun food porn shots on flickr tempted me, but it still took this long for me to make it there for a couple reasons.

I had heard it was expensive (true – a bag of candy costs $7.50) and they only sell hard candy, which for some strange reason, I am only usually interested in if it's opaque (like a Life Saver Wint-o-Green) or in a lollipop form. On my visit, I was in total luck on the second front.
A shelf in the back of the space age-y shop help a selection of cutesy, bubbly lollipops and they were on sale at only $3 a pop. Satisfied with?my purchase, which allowed me to pretend to be on the cover of I-D (what?..?how do you spend your afternoons?) I brought it to the counter where a cute, hip staff member did some low pressure sales by asking me if I had tried a sample. Why, no I hadn't! But with Despana nearby with their plethora of toothpick delights and this free sample spot, this block could be the best thing to happen to your mouth since Lip Smackers.

What she gave me was fizzy and passionfruity and, seriously, seriously good. $7.50 for a bag no longer sounded like a steep price to pay for such happiness. The tingle on my tongue and the unique flavors like mango and kiwi made up for the fact that no one was actually making candy when I visited, which made me sad. But I guess it justifies a return trip and while I'm at it another bag of fizzy candy.

Oktoberfest in Germany officially began Saturday, so my friends hosted an excellent party with homemade, delicious pretzels, traditional hats, Heidi braids, liverwurst, pickles, cheese, bratwurst, hunters sausage, blood sausage, lots of beer, and youtube videos of German girls on the TV.

Yummy and fun, an Oktoberfest Party is a great excuse for beer and meat and getting together friends who love both. The actual dates for the festival in Germany are Sept 20 through October 5, but who's counting, any day from now through Halloween could be perfect for your own shindig.

Sharon Springs is a quaint little upstate town that was in decay before a recent revival, indistinguishable from many except for the very interesting Sulfur Spa trade that has put the town on the map from the early 1800's until only a few years ago when all the Bath Houses and the Adler Hotel shut down, possibly for good. Through state grants and grand plans, supportively the spa and hotels will be restored and made into bigger (but not necessarily better) resort destinations.

Until then, the baths and The Adler stand like a ghost town, relics of the past, eerily with bed sheets still hanging in the windows and broken furniture lurking inside the broken glass. You can walk around the back of The Imperial Baths where a huge temple will surprise you. There you can still scoop out some sulfur water for yourself.

Up the street stands the impressive Adler, an interesting site for urban explorers and as it was built in 1929, lovers of old architecture. It's very haunted feeling, even though it was abandoned only a few years back in 2004. Up the hill in the distance was another abandoned site, but because of fences and warnings, we decided against a closer look. Here are some beautiful interior photos from a blogger with more guts.

Paul Dinello directs Gym Teacher: The Movie while old pal from Strangers with Candy, Amy Sedaris guest stars as a horny oddball principal. Also joining them in the fun that is evident they were all having while shooting this is David Alan Grier, aka “Dag” who is as funny (Boomerang) or awful (In Living Color, Thank God You're Here) as his material. Chris Kattan opens the made for Nickelodeon movie as an obnoxious sports blooper show host and is funny for the first time in his life while Bruce Jenner is also there to remind us how odd he looks now.

The star of the show however, is Chris Meloni a man who has made a career as the serious Law and Order: SVU detective Elliot Stabler and as a bisexual serial killer on Oz before that. From his sideline career choices like Wet Hot American Summer, Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle, Scrubs and this, one would guess that like fellow award winning actor, John C Reilly, there's a passion for the goofy and to make people laugh. He fascinates me for this reason, like a cool guy that hangs out with the weird theater kids to their shock and delight and that's why it's so hard to write that he is unfortunately the weakest link in this movie.

The role of the gym teacher seems like it was custom fit for Stephen Colbert's tricky lovable jerk style. Maybe we was just too busy to give his old friends the time of day?or maybe I am just imagining it, but Meloni, feels less like a lovable jerk and more like a genuinely strange person. It's also a bit long. I'm not really sure if it was necessary to make it a full two hours and if it were, maybe Denillo should have featured himself (barely even in this as a shop teacher) and Sedaris in it more.

Still, I can sometimes love myself a goofy tween sports comedy and especially towards the beginning, there are some genuine laughs here. Plus it's been awhile since I watch something on Nick or Disney (but I still remember you fondly, Even Stevens) ad it's great, after some heavy reading, long nights at work, or any of the other things going on this week in my life, to watch some thing dumb but entertaining that's sponsored by something called “Puppy in my Pocket“.

This Spicy Chicken with Poblano Peppers and Cheese tastes like it's bad for you, but it isn't. From Cooking Light (again) this is a great Americanized Mexican flavor with corn chips crushed up in a cheesy chicken blend, baked in a casserole dish, which, frankly I just don't use enough.

And despite its name, it's not truly that spicy. Poblanos are pretty mild so I spruced it up with that addictive topping, Tabasco Chipotle. I can pretty much love any dish that that stuff goes on top of.