Categories
Features Music

Neighbours coming over for a good vibe

Luckily there is a guy named Tusovka. Loosely
translated from St. Petersburg
slang meaning "good vibe" and "a creative get-together of free
people", the Helsinki-based promoter has been active since 1998
introducing modern Russian music and popular culture to Finnish audiences, and
visa versa.

Tusovka’s biggest event is the annual Tusovkarock
Festival in Helsinki. This year, the eighth edition of the festival at Cultural
Arena Gloria takes place on March 30th and 31st. Kicking off will be St.
Petersburg-based Tva Samoleta (Two Planes), one of Russia's oldest and
best-known ska bands, and Boombox, a popular trio consisting of a vocalist,
guitarist and a DJ from Kiev (Ukraine), with their cosmopolitan blend of rock,
r ’n’ b, funk, soul and reggae. Also performing that night will be popular
ten-member strong Finnish dancehall/dub/reggae collective Puppa J &
Tasottavat.

{mosimage}On Saturday 31st Deti Picasso (Children of Picasso)
hits the stage. The group from Moscow plays psychedelic rock with expressive
vocals by Gaya Arutyunyan, in Russian and Armenian, combined with Moscow
club and Armenian folk influences. Monostereo from St. Petersburg will bring, in what they
themselves call, an energetic mix of post-rock, acid-jazz and hip-hop, combined
with deep and touching lyrics. Joining the party on Saturday will be Helsinki's
own, seven-member funk band Eternal Erection, widely considered to be one of
Finland's best live acts.

To top everything off, there's Russian animation and
fine food. So for a “hyvä meininki” Russian style, head to Tusovkarock!

 

Tusovkarock 2007

 

Friday 30.3: Boombox, Tva Samoleta and Puppa J &
Tasottavat

Saturday 31.3: Deti Picasso, Monostereo and Eternal
Erection

Cultural Arena Gloria, Pieni Roobertinkatu 12, Helsinki

Tickets: 9 e/day, 16 e/2 days

Categories
Blogs FREE! Blog

FREE! Porn

Our cover story
aims at giving a glimpse into the porn industry in Finland. Even when being a relatively
small market, there are several native stars with interesting opinions to be
heard. The small size of the market also makes it perfect for new genres and
trends in making porn films, such as amateur commercial short films.

The music market
in Finland
is also small, but Finnish bands are ready to jump overseas. Some days ago,
several bands traveled to Austin, Texas, to participate in the South by
Southwest festival – this must be one of the largest music festivals in the world.
Over one week, it unites hundred of bands of any style and origin. Eleven bands
from Finland played there: Callisto, Lodger, KTU, I Walk the Line, Rubik,
Astrid Swan, Lapko, Disco Emsemble, Irina Bjorklund & Peter Fox,
22-Pistepirkko and The Crash. This is a good example that Finnish rock music is
something other than Lordi. In this issue you will read about the band Rubik discussing
their debut album only a few days before leaving to the United States. Before
traveling to Texas, Kimmo Pohjonen (of KTU) also spoke to FREE! Magazine. He is
an interesting character who spans different genres with his accordion, from
folk to avant garde, when not scoring music for films.

Don’t stop there!
You will find many more fascinating topics on comics, exhibitions, opera,
historical figures, curiosities and cinema, plus the best tips for your FREE!
time.

Whether you decide
to relax and watch some porn or prepare your schedule for the massive number of
summer festivals, we are sure that spring will be an exciting warming up season
for you. Of course, full of FREE! experiences!

Categories
Albums Music

The 69 Eyes – Angels

Which is ironic,
because it is not the biker-gang outfits, tattoos, the black nail polish and
make-up, and the 80s B-movie vampire paraphernalia that will make you remember
this band. It is not the slightly pretentious lyrics about angels, devils and
the "world of rock'n'roll" that's in between them.  It is not even the music, that for the most
part wouldn't sound out of place on the stage of a dusty roadside bar in the
middle of Arizona. It's the vocals of frontman Jyrki 69 – the vocals
that evoke none other than Elvis Presley.

The combination
might sound weird at first. But in practice it works perfectly, as the
grandiose, Elvis-style singing brings just the right theatrical element to the
picture, and makes the goth-touched-rock of the band sound genuine – in every
possible sense of the word. It is energetic, captivating and self-assured, and
even touching (without being cheesy), where need be.

Angels,
released in the first week of March, is The 69
Eyes' ninth studio album. It features classical-heavy metal band Apocalyptica,
and, in general, eleven songs that would make Axl Rose green with envy
(expect further delay of Chinese Democracy).

Ladies and
gentlemen, the King has left the building. But he'll be back soon, with a crate
of beer and spirits.

Categories
Antonio's blog Blogs

February is gone… and my blog misses me

For those readers who expect that I have changed my mind and become a serious keeper of a blog in Internet…well…maybe they expect too much… By the way, are there readers there??? Eh come on guys, most of the articles in the website have not received a comment at all, and the same applies to the guestbook, with only few visits every week. If you consider that something is marvelous or just simply a shit, we will be glad that you dedicate a couple of sentences to let us know, but please write!!!
It is becoming very frustrating to have the feeling that we are alone here writing the newspaper for the reindeers…

In any case, I am going to try my best and keep the blog more updated than I have done these first couple of months, although it is not easy with this hectic life. During last weeks, we have assisted to some interesting events, and I did not want to let more time pass by before commenting them.

We were on the 20th of February watching Anna Karenina at the National Opera. I must say that I enjoyed it very much. Maybe my background has more to do with being in the middle of small clubs in rock concerts than assisting to ballet, but I must say that I really liked the performance. It was dynamic, full of plasticity, and the decoration was astonishing. That week was actually pretty much of not resting at all: On Wednesday, it was time to have an interview and assist to the later concert of The Yayhoos. You will be able to read more about them in the next issue of FREE! , but well, the concert ended up having quite a cold atmosphere due to the lack of spectators, the same that the weather outside that I am pretty sure made a lot of people stay at home instead of daring to come to Tavastia to enjoy the good music of the American band. In any case, there is nothing as good against the coldness as finishing the night with some good beers and a nice talk with the Tour Manager, who was by chance from Madrid, the same than me. “Pieni Mailmaa”, as the Finnish would say.

Two days later, it was the turn of watching Apulanta in Nosturi. I find actually the place a very cozy one for concerts, although the acoustic is not the most brilliant one, I must say. The guys from Heinola really came there to make business, and provided with another good show to the delighted audience. Many young people there, almost teenagers. And my FREE! Magazine red and yellow t shirt causing amazement and shocking the masses. Goddamn, if we wanted to cause an impression when making the T shirt, we really got it.

This is all for today from this absent minded editor who must be one of the worst in the world to promote his own magazine. In Apulanta concert, I did not bring a single copy of the magazine to the entrance of Nosturi, even when we had a three page cover story about the band… well, word to mouth must work for the moment. As again Finnish say: Elämä on!

Categories
Books Features

Letters from Finland

The 31 letters can be read like short stories.
Some tell of fatal incidents, like the "Faisan of Malmi" ending up as
a delicious French dish in the casserole of the writer's mother. Or about a
cheese sent from France, arriving weeks late, due to a public strike. In a
correct and pitiless attitude the postman delivers the stinking package, where
a cribbling "spite from Satan" is left, beside a rotten postcard
"with the best wishes from your parents".

 

The nature is really beautiful and muurahainen
sounds so erotic

In one letter Guicheteau prepares his friend
for the first visit to a mökki (wooden summerhouse) and provides instruction on
how to obtain the sympathy of the Finnish landlord: "You take a long hot
bath accompanied by a white wine or a bottle of Finlandia. Then, with a towel
around your hips, sit outside on the balcony. Take your photo album from
Finland and have it open at the most beautiful page. Look at the lakes and
forests. Listen to them. Be patient. Surrender to the wind and air. Let it seize
your body. Wait for this sublime moment, when you feel neither cold nor hot.
Finally, in a faithful voice, sigh out slowly: "Kyllä luonto on todella
kaunis". ("The nature is really beautiful")

There is a poetic description of the mökki: We
can smell the wood and moisture, see the old magazines from the seventies that
nobody reads, the mugs in different sizes and colours, the pot with the sugar
hardened during the winter, hear the conversation about trees to be cut, feel
the comfortable old clothes and the time passing by slowly.

The peculiar Finnish family names are
meditated: Koivujärvi ("Birch-Lake"), Haapapuro (Trembling-Stream),
Jokimaa (River-Earth) and Haukka (Falcon) – don t they remind you of names from
the North American Indians? And the sound of the language – how sensual in
"muurahainen" (ant), as moving slowly with your mouth over a naked
body. Or howling like a wolf in the forest with "kuu" (moon), dancing
a Brasilian music rhythm in "katokatokukatuli" (See, who comes!) and crashing
solidly in "minä rakastan sinua" (I love you).

 

Finns are strange

Of course the "typical" Finnish melancholy
is a subject. The experience of a  joyful
birthday party that turns into a burial atmosphere, when in late hours the saddest
tangos are played and people sink into silence, think deep thoughts, or even
start to cry. Is it moral hangover, heritage from their Slavic roots, or a need
for self-punishment?

Some themes and questions may arise especially
from the contrast of Protestant north and Catholic, Latin south. Hence the
straight way of northern talking whereb the author feels sometimes "like a
baroque artist overcharging his painting with angels or superfluous
details".

To the question of why the lights in a bar
flash in the end of the evening, comes the short answer "They close"
and not "because it is late and this is the way to…blah blah". No
explanation from a doorman of the disco, regarding why you can't get in. Only
"Therefore!"

One chapter is about the hopeless effort to
teach students the sense and art of lying. How can they honestly tell the
teacher that they have not done their homework? It's like offending a person.
Could they not excuse themselves by telling they have forgotten it at home or
were busy with an important exam?

Also, why are some people so rudely knocking
against you in the tram or supermarket without any "anteeksi"? Or why
do your neighbours hide behind their doors until you have disappeared into the
lift? And if by accident the common journey takes place – why don't they say a
word? How can Finns be so worried when you come some minutes late for an
appointment? And why do they meet in the windy corner under the Stockmann clock
and not in a cosy café enjoying the lecture of a newspaper?

Each of the questions appears in its own
chapter. Exaggerated and presented in a pointed manner the stories have also
their own dramatic turns that lead to a surprising end or conclusion.
Guicheteau's style is made of French delicatesse, of self-irony and might
sometimes sound slightly presumptuous. Therefore the citation of La Fontaine at
the beginning of the book: "No-one is prophet in his home country. Let's
search for our adventures elsewhere".

 

Finns are wonderful

Reading in some American guide: "Be aware
that since the Ostrogoths the human being has not seen a more rude and impolite
civilisation than the one of the Parisians", the author concludes that the
numerous pardons and demands in conditional form in French ("Excuse me, would
it be possible to order a coffee" instead of "Yksi kahvi" – one
coffee) cannot compete with the Finnish "kohteliaisuus (politeness)".
Because Finns act politely. And we can only admire their flexibility of switching
from their own language to a foreign one, opening the space to share
conversation.

"From love and iron" tells a story of
two iron finger-rings found in a fleamarket. They belonged to a couple at the time
of the Continuation War and replaced the golden wedding rings given away to
finance the fight for independence. Trying on the small rings, the writer feels
the blood beat in his cold fingers and imagines it as the hearts of the old
lovers made of iron courage and their love for their country.

"You see," Samuel, ends one letter,
"all this is Finland, a mobile ringing on a deserted island, a country
house without running water but with television, a campfire that is lighted
with methylated spirits".

Many foreigners come to live in Finland. They
grow into Finish culture. It can happen to be an astonishing experience.

 

Metamorphosis:

"The Finns have not only one traditional
vodka, they have two of them. They pretend that "kossu" and
Koskenkorva are the same thing. I disagree. The "kossu" is an alcohol
designed to make you drunk, to forget or to destroy yourself. But
"Koskenkorva" is something completely different. Usually I keep a
bottle of it in an iceholder in the fridge. It happens, on certain evenings in
the cold of the winter, in the warmth of my apartment, between calm and
solitude, that I allow myself a little glass of this brew. The effects, Samuel,
exceed capacity of human comprehension.

All alone on the scenery of the livingroom
table, the glass, filled to the rim, is executing a strange performance. Covered
with icy frost and foam as if it wants to recreate (I ignore the reason) the
clattering cold of winter in this cozy home. I approach with the reverence of a
noble, bowing and take the glass delicately with two fingers. Carefully, not to
spill a drop (because here is also the difference between the drinker of kossu and
the drinker of Koskenkorva), I slowly lead the elixir to my lips, which ignore
until now the torture they are going to receive.

In the moment where the glass is close to the
mouth and where the scent of alcohol rises to the nose, it is good to
concentrate, like a sprinter on the starting line.

One does not drink the Koskenkorva, you must
fling it into your body!

It is divine and terrible!

First the lips, then the mouth, the throat and
the chest are set to fire and blood, as an eagle drawing in his talons. The
belly then begins to glow like a forge. You have to retain your respiration to
get the fire down. It feels good like a hit of the axe, or something of this
kind and you can't be sure if you are the victim or the murderer.

Once the pain has disappeared I heave a sigh.

And here, Samuel, at this precise moment when
it steams out of me like a liberation, I am the most independent, the most
proud, and the most heroic of all the Finns."

Categories
Interviews Music

Releasing a violent storm of music

Tell
us about your new project, Violent Storm. What is the story behind it?

I have been writing music all my
life, since I was a kid and lived in Argentina. Then I moved to the UK and continued
composing. I did not have much chance to put my composition into performance in
live bands in the UK or the States, because basically I was playing
professionally; backing up other singers, rock bands, then with Ritchie Balckmore,
Malmsteem, and with these two guys you cannot show your own songs much, you
have to play what they tell you to play. So I was accumulating songs all this
time. And I felt it was about time to make my own CD, so I invited some guests
musicians like KK Downing and Malmsteem, and they were happy to collaborate. KK
became more involved producing the album.

Have you worked before with KK?

No. He came to see Yngwee Malmsteem
when we played in Barcelona,
and we met there for the first time. Then we kept in touch, I went to see him
playing with Judas Priest in Miami
and Las Vegas,
and I mentioned to him that I was in this project. I showed him some songs. I
told him that Malmsteem was going to play a couple of songs, and if he would
fancy to play a couple more. He said “sure”, and that is how the thing kicked off.
Then, he wanted to have a little more of input in the project. He has a lot of
suggestions and I welcomed most of them, so he became a producer in the
project. 

-Was it a problem not to be often
at the same place, working sending material via the InternetNo, not really. With many bands you
work on distance. You send ideas in MP3 and so on; it is not the old fashion
way of gathering with the band. Of course it is nicer when it is like that, but
logistics have improved, and sometimes schedules are busy. KK was busy with Judas Priest
project, I was busy touring with Malmsteem, and so it had to be done at everybody’s
convenient time.

{mosimage}
And the story behind the band’s name? Who came
up with it?

It is a funny story. I liked the violet colour, maybe it also has to do
with the colour purple, since I am a great Deep Purple fan. I figured
out that maybe I could call the project “Violet Storm” but KK told me that he
was not going to be involved in any way in a band with the word Violet in its
name…

So then I called it Violent Storm, that sounds similar, and I think that
sounds great.

Which are your favourite songs in the album?

For me it is difficult to choose because I like all the tracks. I
intended to have quite a lot of diversity. I listen to most of the band's cds,
and then after 2-3 tracks it becomes monotonous, so I tried not to have the
same feeling with my album. I think that all the tracks in the album are very
different. I enjoyed playing and composing all the songs, so I cannot say
“Track number 5 is the one”.  They all
have their own “thing” that I like.

And then it is a funny thing that people who have listened to the album
and critics mention different tracks as favourite ones. For Yngwee, “Empty
Hope” is the favourite because it is the one with more classical stuff, but
some DJs have different ones as favourite.

You did a solo album years ago, Ostinato, and now Violet
Storm. Which one do you feel most satisfied with?

Well, they both come from my creativity. Ostinato was a challenge, to
play classical things with an electric bass, music that was more meant to be
played with a keyboard, so I wanted to see what happened when playing it with
the bass. I had a very nostalgic feeling with that album, and I think that when
I retire, that is the thing I want to do, just to sit in my studio and record
classical stuff.

Any ideas about touring dates for Violent Storm?

We are working on that just at same time we speak. Things will be
confirmed soon, in the next few days. We intend to play all over Europe, including Scandinavia,
Spain, the UK, etc. We are
really eager to take this project on the road.

Are KK Downing and Malmsteem going to appear as guests in some
concerts?

It would be great if they have time to join us in some of the shows, but
well, we are going to have our own band standing on their own feet. We have to prove
ourselves that we can work as a valid band.

You were recently in Finland
playing three gigs with Malmsteem. How was the experience?

Oh, it was great. Finland
became one of my favourite places in the world. I love the people very much; I
think they are very straightforward, very honest. I do not mind the cold
weather, so I enjoyed it. Although it was not so cold, I was looking forward to
lots of snow… and there was not.

Some people think that a Finnish audience can be a bit cold. Did you
notice anything like that?

Not at all. I really enjoyed the concert and the people’s attitude.

Tell me about this G3 project. How was to be in a project involving,
apart from Malmsteem, Satriani and Vai?

Doing the G3 was an amazing project! You can imagine, with these three guitar
monsters! The musicians in each band were amazing as well, for example Billy
Sheehan was with Steve Vai´s band. Everybody was as good as it gets, so I felt
really privileged to be in a situation like that. You know you have to do your
best every night; you have to do well and perform well. I really learnt a lot
at that experience.

Malmsteem said literally in the Helsinki press conference that on
stage, he does “whatever the fuck he wants”, meaning that he can change the
song, he can play the way he likes. Is it difficult for you to follow the
performance, or do you enjoy with this way of working, this improvisation?

It is challenging, but well, I was “trained” with Ritchie Blackmore
because I played with him before, and he does similar things. Before you have
time to realise, he plays something that is not even in the set list and you
have not even rehearsed and on the spot, you have to play it! Maybe that is the
reason why Malmsteem likes to get “ex-Blackmore musicians”, because we are all
“well trained”

So after working with Blackmore, there are no big surprises for you
anymore on stage.

Being honest, it keeps the show from being boring. It keeps you on your
toes, because you don’t know what comes up next. I have done gigs when it was
the same list every night, and I almost fell asleep in the middle of the show,
so this is quite different.

I saw some pictures where you are dressed up
in these curious medieval clothes while playing with Blackmore. How was that?
Is it not strange to play, disguised like that?

In the Blackmore experience, he and Candy loved the medieval
things. They tried to put the show in medieval times, so a part is to work with
that kind of clothes…Well, I had never worn tights before, so it was a little
bit different. But well, everybody was in the same boat. Blackmore liked to put
this funny Austrian hat on himself. Sometimes we were hanging out, going to a
pub, and he would put one of those ridiculous hats on me. And people were
watching at me like “what is wrong with this guy???”But well, it is part of the
fantasy of working with Blackmore!

So the fantasy is everywhere, it can be on
stage or even in a pub.

Yeah, he really liked that! In his house, all the decoration is medieval
type! He has an old abandoned park nears his house… He owns lots of medieval
stuff, nothing too dark, but just funny stuff owned by him. So he really enjoys
that.

And in the future, what is going to be next after Violent Storm? Any
possibility of having a second album?

Well, I have sort of being planning this project for a long time, so I'm
going to give this a lot of attention. The next step is touring, and not just
in Europe. The album is going to be released
in America
too, so I am going to be touring in America, and hopefully also in South America, Australia… and everywhere else.
Depending on the response, there would be the possibility of planning a second
album – let’s see.

Do you know how long the tour is going to be?

I expect it to be for a long time. Probably it will be starting in May
through the rest of the years. It could be having gigs for 3-4 weeks, and then
resting for a couple of weeks, and then back on the road. So hopefully it will
be a very extended tour, we need to spread the word and show it in many
different places. So you must come and see it!

Categories
At the cinema Cinema

Summer of ’84

{mosimage}Kid is a
confused girl trying to find her place in this world, between being Swedish and
Finnish, and being a child and an adult. Not knowing where she belongs, she
desperately wants to be loved by her mom, but at the same time she is ashamed
of her. Kid is almost a teen and her sexuality is starting to awaken, which
makes things even more complicated for her. The tension between Kid and her
mother rises so high that it almost destroys everything.

In many
ways Aavan Meren Tuolla Puolen is a
nostalgic and bright movie paying regard to the fact that it is director Nanna
Huolman’s first feature length movie, plus the young actors’ first movie. In
addition to good storytelling, the acting is excellent, especially the young
talent Mia Saarinen, who performs very well. The scenery is beautiful with
thousands of Finnish lakes and endless forests, and the Art Director made a big
effort to find artefacts from the ‘80s. A great film that reflects exactly how
the Finnish summer of 1984 was!

 

Categories
At the cinema Cinema

Finnish gigolo

Juha’s
friend agrees to help him to sell his body. Soon their business is booming and
Juha is making more money in an hour than in two days at his old job. His guilt
worsens every day, as does the shame and lies, but the money helps him cope with the downside of his
new profession. Everything is fine, so long as his wife doesn’t know about his
new job or touch her antidepressants.

Miehen Työ is a film about a man’s
dignity and humiliation, as well as male prostitution. It is also a story about
taking responsibilities and the pressure on a man, a father and a husband. The
film is dark with a hint of a humour, but realistic and quite intense thanks to
the credible acting. Directed by Aleksi Salmenperä, Miehen Työ is
his second feature, although he has made several short films, and hopefully we
will see another feature film from him again soon.

 

 

{mosimage}Interview with Tommi Korpela

You played the leading man, Juha,
in Miehen Työ. What’s Juha like and
was it easy for you to play the part?

Juha
is a man who thinks that his value is measured by his achievements. He feels
that he is loved only when he is able to support his family. I don’t think that
there are very much similarity between me and Juha. The part was challenging
and enjoyable to play.

 

Why was it interesting act in this
movie?

This
is my first main part in a movie and before this I have been doing more acting
at theatre and TV. So, acting on the screen is always good fun and experience.

 

How was the team?

It
was great and everything went smoothly. We shot the whole thing in about 6
weeks. I would like to do other projects with the team in a future.

 

What else are you going to do this
year?

I
am busy for the rest of the year. I will continue my work at theatre and act on
TV as well.

 

Aleksi Salmenperä answers

Why did you make a movie about the
shame of a man?

I
liked the topic. It is interesting and important issue. There are plenty of men
in Finland and everywhere else on this planet who feel like Juha.

 

Did you any research about the male
prostitution?

I
met a journalist who had written an article about the subject. I read it, got
interested in it and read some other articles as well.

 

What is the deal of the man’s
shame?

Men
want to accomplish things, be successful and if they fail, it is a matter of
their self-esteem. Men are very competitive and they measure their achievements
all the time.

 

Do you think that there will be
public conversations about the main topics of the film? Which topic will gain
more attention in publicity?

Probably
the male prostitution -topic, which really isn’t the main topic. It is easy to
hang on to it.

 

What’s on your agenda this year?

I
am planning new films. Few subjects have been in my mind for a while now. I
would like to do a film about an old man and his despair or about kids in the
70’s.

 

Categories
At the cinema Cinema

The King of the Minimoys

{mosimage}There is
nothing astonishing new in Besson’s movie, but it outstands due to its innocence,
simplicity and the friendly fairy-like characters, the Minimoys, who borrow the
voices of Madonna, Snoop Dogg, David Bowie and Robert De
Niro, among others. The dubbed Finnish version also features the voices of
pop stars like Paula Vesala of PMMP
and rapper Elastinen.

While working
on the films, Besson published a series of children books based on Arthur’s
adventures. More movies based on these books are expected.

 

 

Luc Besson on Arthur and the Minimoys

Why did you
choose the film to be part animated and part live action?

I don’t
come from the animation world. For me it is very important that the audience
believes in the story. Making a live action introduction helps us to believe.

The main
characters have the voices of pop stars, how did you come up with that idea?

It was just
a coincidence. The character of Max was inspired by Snoop Dogg. Madonna is a
queen so it was easy for her to lend her voice to a princess. David Bowie…
well, he just has an amazing voice. It was easy to call them. The idea worked so
I suggested that dubbed versions around the world would use pop stars too.

This is
your 10th film. Once you said you would retire from directing when you reach
this milestone. Do you still think this way?

I don’t
know. I’m scared of repeating myself. I need to feel that I still have
something meaningful to say. I burned my first short film because of a friend’s
opinion. He showed that I need to have something to say if I want to make
movies. I learned the hard way.

 

Categories
Cinema DVD

Eight Below

If Bambi has cruel moments, what to say about a movie where the
dogs, which cope wonderfully with the leading roles of the film,  face the toughest challenges that turn them into
almost a pack of wolves. They die, fight, kill and become sharper in the
struggle for life. You can see the wildest side of nature since the moment they
are left behind, but also the most marvellous one.

I even enjoyed Paul Walker´s acting. There is not much of the
“handsome boy” role as everybody would expect, and more about sobriety in front
of the camera. He is very smart playing the role of Jerry Shepard, the owner
and guide of the dogs. The veteran director, Frank Marshall, has created a wonderful story,
evolved in paradisiacal and extreme landscapes, that is able to transmit a real
love for friends, even if they have four legs. Because if there is one word
that defines the film, that would be commitment. The friends have not left
behind, and if they had to for major reasons, other friends would come to help rescue
those who had been left.

The rest of the cast develop their roles quite nicely as well, and even Jason
Biggs´ foolness does not turn our to be too smarmy.

As I said, I enjoyed the movie through all of its 115 minutes. I never felt
bored; I enjoyed the stunning polar nature surrounding our dear fellows Buck,
Dewey, Maya, Max, Oldie, Jack, Shadow, Shorty and Truman.

One complaint: the Huskie dogs look really beautiful, but so similar the
eight of them that it can easily cause difficulties to distinguish who is doing
what…

When I sit on a sofa and get ready to see a Disney’s movie, I know that
probably I am not going to witness the last masterpiece from the psychological
drama genre, or a movie with a very difficult plot. I expect fun and
entertainment for all the family.  Eight
Below achieves it, and for that reason deserves all my respect.

Categories
Cinema Features

An open source adventure from outer space

“It started
as a hobby,” Samuli Torssonen, the man behind the Star Wreck saga and the face
of Captain Pirk, the ultimate emperor of the Universe, explains. “I’m a
huge fan of the Star Trek series and movies since I was kid.  I liked it so much that I had to make
something similar. It was my way of expressing my fandom”. In 1992, a teenage
Samuli created a simple 2D animation movie with three spaceships shooting at
each other. It was his first step in the universe of Star Wreck. As he admits,
the graphics are bad, the story is bad, almost everything was bad… but the core
of the story is there: Pirk, Mr. Fukov, Mr. Dwarf, the Plingons… The big
Finnish parody of Star Trek had begun.

The last
episode of the series so far, Star Wreck: In the Pirkinning has become a cult
movie, downloaded millions of times from Internet. For being an amateur movie,
it counters with astonishing computer-generated special effects.  “During the seven years that this project
lasted, several computers worked non-stop at my apartment”, admits Samuli.

Star Wreck
is all do-it-yourself philosophy. The production started with a small camera, a
portable television, a couple of 25 euro work lights and a broken wheelchair, Timo Vuorensola says. “Samuli contacted
me through some friends and asked me to play the role of Colonel Dwarf in 1997
for Star Wreck V,” Timo recalls. “The requirements were that he needed a guy
who can speak loudly and a guy who is tall and has long hair.” He ended up
being the director.

 

Internet hit

The
Internet and word of mouth have been the distribution channels that made Star
Wreck widely known. “People got
interested in us because we were giving it for free. The best way to market
your film is to get a lot of people watch it,” according to Timo.

As Samuli tells us, Star Wreck went to the Internet very early: “We released the first movies in 1997
and it was amazing because there were no movies at that time in the Internet.
Then people started contacting us through newsgroups and our message board”.

That is how
Star Wreck started to be a collaborative effort that gathered more than 300
people working voluntarily. For the forthcoming projects the team wants to keep
the community idea of the project: “We
would like to use the Internet to make a collaborative film,” says the director.
”The whole concept is that there are not only us making the film, but also our
fans. That keeps on giving the same kind of freedom to create. The idea behind
this attitude seems to be based on open source software: “For some reason this
kind of thinking is very Finland-based,” he continues. “We have Linux and a
couple of other phenomena. If it’s done so effectively in computer programs,
why not in the film industry?”

The open source idea is also applied to the ways the movie is
distributed. It is released under Creative Commons license and freely
distributed from the movie’s official website and peer to peer networks.
Copyright battles are not in the Star Wreck agenda: “For me, piracy the
funniest thing in the world,” says Timo. ”I’m more afraid of the things that
are done against it, like the Digital Rights Management (DRM), which is
preventing people from using the  available technologies."

 

{mosimage}Iron Sky

Samuli’s production team is currently ready for the next project. It
will start with a large budget. So far, only the title, Iron Sky, and a promotional
picture have been released.

Do expectations affect these guys? Samuli admits that “people are
expecting something a little bit better, but we want to make something way much
better”.

Timo thinks that one way to improve is to be very careful with the
story: “Everybody knows that we are able to make great special effects. I have
a feeling that we have a very strong story that people don’t expect from us”

And obviously, after so many years working hard together, the guys have
become a great family, cheering up each other when going through bad times.
“Low moments usually last a couple of hours, and get solved with some beers. We have our own working methods. We
know what the others are thinking. There are no big problems between us. Now we
are four working as the core team, very strongly involved. Most probably we
will be working like this in the future, although it is true that we will need
to expand a bit. We need more professional people joining. However, it is a
hard process to include someone into a group that has worked together for such
a long time”. And expert hands have joined the team, since it was recently
confirmed that writer Johanna Sinisalo
will contribute to the script.

As a last question, we wanted to know what people’s reactions are when
they see the supreme emperor of the universe walking around Finnish streets: “I
have noticed in Tampere that people stared at me, but not really in Helsinki.
In bars Finnish guys come and talk about the movie…they find the courage when
they are drunk in the toilet!” Samuli laughs.

Categories
Cinema DVD

The Replacement Killers

Teaming up with him is Mira
Sorvino, with a convincing interpretation of Meg Coburn, a tough woman
forged by a hard destiny, who employees herself faking different kind of
documents and identification cards.

The director, Antoine Fuqua,
achieves some great action sequences during the movie. Chow Yun Fat, out of the
typical stereotyped muscled hero for action movies, commands respect on screen
just with his wild gazes. And the film counts some top-quality cast actors for
the “bad boys” such as Jurgen Pröchnow,
Clifton Collins or Danny Trejo.

But nevertheless, the film lacks that "something” necessary to
break the line of mediocrity. The Chinatown
atmosphere could have been much better explored, the characters appear to be
only lightly developed, and the rhythm of the film is sometimes not able to overcome
the feeling of merely admiring one killing spree after another by Yun-Fat/Lee.
If you are thirsty for more of Chow Yun-Fat´s action movies, go back to the earlier
Asian films where he starred.

Categories
Albums Music

The Good, The Bad and the Queen

The result
is a laid back album of pleasant listening. Music floods like calm ocean waves
and pop song structure is exceeded. The songs are moody, even cinematic. Allen
and Simonon, who is back in the music business after 16 years, keep a mellow
groove and Albarn’s singing is melancholic so the album is at risk of falling
into monotony, until the climax of the final song when the band loses the
unsentimental mood.

The album
is produced by Danger Mouse, responsible of Gnarls Barkley’s hit Crazy. Frequent listening will help finding
the rich details of the production and the charm of the compositions. One just
misses a more adventurous way of telling this sad story of a city.

Categories
Cinema DVD

Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles

Riding Alone for Thousand
of Miles is a movie
that flows peacefully and is well-balanced, just as the main character Gou-ichi
Takata (played by Ken Takakura) faces the problems of life.

There are many important things being told to the spectator in the film,
hidden behind the simplicity of forms used to narrate the storyline. It tells
about family relations, about bonds broken and remade, about communication,
between human beings and between cultures (Chinese-Japanese) and about the loss
of communication (from a father and a son who have not met for decades to the loss
of phone coverage in a remote Chinese village).

Director Zhang Yimou, who became internationally recognized with
his previous film House of Flying Daggers, completes a circle here; such
a recurrent figure when we come to think about Asian philosophy. He is able to
transport us from the simplest things of life, to the most complicated
feelings, and then back to simplicity reflected in the pure eyes of a child.
And all that with an exquisite respect for the culture, traditions and relations
of the two most powerful Asian tigers.

I enjoyed the redemption pilgrimage of Mr. Takata through the land of China, because it makes us just take a
look to some of the most important features that we have left in this life to
be considered human beings: forgiveness and love.

Categories
Albums Music

Grinderman – Grinderman

Cave sounds
revitalized, trying to be dark and noisy as he hasn’t been since Henry’s Dream. Grinderman is an
incorrect band, even naughty with a low-fi punk blues approach. The opener
track, 'Get it On', is uplifting and angry in a way that one feels like running
down the streets kicking basket cases and smashing windows.

But
Grinderman is also the continuation to the previous Nick Cave work, the double
album Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus.
The song '(I Don’t Need You To) Set Me Free' would have perfectly fit on that
album. Another connection with previous works is one of those obscure murder
ballads that Cave loves to deliver.

Even when
Grinderman does not bring many new things to his music, it is thrilling to
listen to such a fresh Nick Cave, full of raw energy. The music on this album
promises some very hot live shows.