the girl with the dragon tattoo, the movie

I recently finished reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. So I was pleased to see that the movie was at the second run theater here in Madison. We went and both enjoyed it. It was surprisingly true to the book. Just an FYI it was quite violent (but so was the book), it was 2.5 hours long (but didn't seem like it) and it is of course subtitled (because this is the Swedish film). There is a Hollywood version in the works but I doubt it will be better. The actress playing Lizbeth was perfect. The other actors were less Hollywood pretty but I am sure they will be in the American version.

Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) and rebellious computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) team up to investigate the unsolved disappearance of wealthy Henrik Vanger's (Sven-Bertil Taube) teen niece (Ewa Fröling), only to uncover dark secrets about Vanger's powerful family. Niels Arden Oplev directs this Swedish thriller based on the first novel from Stieg Larsson's best-selling trilogy. - Netflix

Even though we saw it in the theater I am sure you can get this at the library or Netflix. There is also a link to the right.

Coco Chanel

I enjoy Shirley MacLaine. This movie was a nice way to learn more about Chanel. I certainly knew of her designs but little about her life. A nice bit of entertainment as I worked.

Shirley MacLaine (in a Golden Globe-nominated role) stars in this Lifetime biopic, which tells the story of one of fashion's most prominent women, Coco Chanel, beginning with her humble beginnings in a French orphanage and continuing through her unparalleled success as a fashion icon. The film also explores Chanel's dramatic personal life, including her intense and tragic love affair with an English gentleman. Malcolm McDowell co-stars.

I am kind of on a Chanel kick and have another one on my list to watch. I'll fill you in after I watch it.

If you are interested there is a link on the left to the DVD.

annie leibovitz: life through a lens

As I have been drawing a new font I watched this documentary and enjoyed it very much. It was fun to see Leibovitz as a young woman, watching her work for Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair. Not to mention all those wonderful iconic photos she has given us. She also talked about her work. I enjoy hearing any artist talk about their process and thinking. If you are interested I have posted a link to the right.

creative process... typography table

Over a year ago our sweet friend Phil made this little side table for us and sent it as a kit. We put it together and then moved and it got lost somewhere in the basement.

It has surfaced... and all along I've been thinking that somehow it would be a Paris table embellished with all things Paris... But then we moved here and it seems like it should be a typography table. In black and white with tiny accent colors... So out has come my type ephemera and my thinking cap.

Hmmmm Thinking Caps... we just saw Alice in Wonderland yesterday and I was once again taken with the Mad Hatter. I wish he could make me a thinking cap. Something between the Harry Potter sorting hat that could talk to me and a hat for a tea party. If you are looking for a not for kids fairy tale I recommend it. I loved all the visuals. I've posted a link to the right.

As the table progresses I'll keep you posted!

(Thanks Gwen and Kirk for the additions to the pile of letters!)

the birds...

Two weekends ago we came downstairs to see a flock of swallows flying around and even flying into our large glass windows. This photo does not do it justice. There were probably 5 times the amount.

When not flying madly they were relaxing on our dock, our neighbor's dock and the other neighbor's porch railing. John noticed that it was just us 3 and other docks further down had no birds. I wonder if it was our old wooden docks vs. the newer white possibly fiberglass ones.

Actually it was pretty creepy especially when they were flying and so close to us. It made me think of the Hitchcock movie, The Birds.

The Birds 1963PG-13120 minutes Chic socialite Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren) enjoys a passing flirtation with an eligible attorney (Rod Taylor) in a San Francisco pet shop and, on an impulse, follows him to his hometown bearing a gift of lovebirds. But upon her arrival, the bird population runs amok. Suddenly, the townsfolk face a massive avian onslaught, with the feathered fiends inexplicably attacking people all over Bodega Bay. Cast: Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, Jessica Tandy Director: Alfred Hitchcock

And now the birds are gone... it was just the one day that we saw them. But now I have an urge to watch all the old Hitchcock movies. I think I have Vertigo in my Netflix queue.

art & copy

This is a movie that we saw a year ago at the Madison Film Festival. Doug Pray, the filmmaker grew up here in Madison and spoke before the film was shown. John and I and our friend Steve saw it together and all enjoyed it a lot. I noticed that the Netflix reviews were rather whiny about this film. Maybe our enjoyment was because we had all worked in either advertising or TV and were of an age to remember the advertising campaigns. I recommend it. I watched it again on my computer as I worked. I got it from Netflix.

2009NR88 minutes Explore the fascinating and sometimes mysterious world of advertising with this compelling documentary from filmmaker Doug Pray that features a host of interviews with some of the biggest names in the business. Meet the talented minds who created taglines forever embedded in the American psyche, including "Just Do It," "Where's the Beef?" and "Got Milk?" Hal Riney, Ed Rollins and many others share their insights.

2 art documentaries...

I am working on a new, very detailed font this week. The drawing part is easy and fun. The technical part is... repetitious at best. So I have been watching some documentaries on my computer as I merrily work.

These 2 were interesting...

Herb & Dorothy 2008NR 87 minutes Chronicling the story of unlikely art collectors Herb Vogel and Dorothy Vogel, filmmaker Megumi Sasaki demonstrates that it's not necessary to be wealthy in order to build a significant collection in this fascinating documentary. A postal clerk and a librarian, the Vogels share a passion for art, which they pursued over decades, becoming two of the most important collectors of minimalist and conceptual art with more than 4,000 pieces.

Who the #$&% Is Jackson Pollock? 2006 PG-13 74 minutes When trailer park resident Teri Horton bought a painting for five bucks, little did she know it could be a genuine Jackson Pollock worth millions. This film documents her dealings with the art world's elitist establishment to authenticate the piece. Throughout the brash woman's 15-year endeavor to validate the painting, the clash between stuffy art dealers and the cussin', beer-drinkin' Horton is funny, eye-opening and utterly unforgettable.

Objectified

2009 76 minutes iscover how manufactured objects that surround us such as cars, phones and chairs influence our daily lives with this revealing documentary, which features top industrial designers discussing their creative processes and professional objectives. Director Gary Hustwit (Helvetica) explores not only how objects get made, but also why they make us feel the way they do and how they can make our world better.

I found this documentary to be quite visually satisfying. I enjoyed it every bit as much as I enjoyed Helvetica. You can get Objectified thru Netflix. As a designer I love seeing other designers and hearing them talk about their thought process and their craft.