New videocast premiere!

Wow, it has been a long time since I last updated this website. Sorry 'bout that, folks. I have a new job back home and it's seriously been putting a cramp in my blog updating.

There is a silver lining, though. I have put the finishing touches on the first episode of my all-new videocast, entitled "Devin's Picks," where every week (or so), I will post a collection of short films and music videos I come across on the web. Some are old favorites, some are new favorites, some are animated, some live-action. Some are enchanting, some are disturbing, and all of them are entertaining.

The only problem is that I tried my best to make this an official "video podcast," but I kept getting screwed by my campus web server, by my .Mac account, and by FeedBurner. So I took the easy way out and simply uploaded the first episode to Google Video for your immediate consumption.



Here are the specifics about the short films featured in this episode:

• An Eye for Annai
  directed by Jonathan Klassen and Daniel Rodrigues
  link provided by Drawn!
  (Click here to download!)
  
  
• Björk, "All is Full of Love"
  directed by Chris Cunningham
  
  
• The Heavy Blinkers, "Try Telling That to My Baby"
  directed by Fluorescent Hill
  link provided by Up the Tree
  (Click here to download!)
  
  
• Tyger
  directed by Guilherme Marcondes
  link provided by Drawn!
  (Click here to download!)

We Are Now-Up-To-Date!

Got a lot to report to the eMasses out there. First off, I'd like to announce that I am now a radio DJ for the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 103.1 WUAG! I'll be on the air Tuesday mornings from 9 to 11 AM EST. For those of you outside the broadcast area (i.e. not in Greensboro), we have a website where you can stream the radio station online. Unfortunately, they don't really explain how to listen to the online feed, so I'll give you the rundown:

1. Open iTunes or RealPlayer or any audio software that allows streaming media.

2. If you're on iTunes, go to the Advanced menu and choose Open Stream. On RealPlayer, go to the File menu and choose Open Location.

3. Copy and paste this URL in the dialog box:

http://152.13.200.170:8000/listen.pls

Hit OK and voila! Instant college radio streaming satisfaction!

Don't forget to tune in Tuesday mornings to listen to my show, Early Rotation. If you'd like to make a request, call the WUAG hotline at (336) 334-5450.

In other news...there's a ton of new fake movie trailers that have been posted on YouTube and, as always, they are exceptionally well-made and quite funny. My favorite is 10 Things I Hate About Commandments with the incredibly elaborate Titanic: The Sequel coming in at number two.

Speaking of Number Two, I have really gotten into the cult hit TV show Wonder Showzen, which is quite possibly the most shocking, vulgar and offensive television program currently on the air. By MTV2, no less! I thought MTV gave up on being daring and original years ago. Here's one of my favorite clips, featuring Chauncey, the main puppet on the program, and the Number Two, who desperately tries to get back on the show.

Fatboy Slim juggling video!

New Fatboy Slim video for his upcoming greatest hits comp...and the video is pretty f'ing sweet.


Get this video and more at MySpace.com

Over the Hedge Review

Over the Hedge is DreamWorks' first really good post-Shrek CGI film, mainly because it has a solid concept that continues the tradition the film company started with their initial animated features The Prince of Egypt and Road to El Dorado and that tradition is "Don't be like Disney!"

While the Wal-Mart ads and Burger King toys may say otherwise, Over the Hedge is a clever indictment of consumerism that manages to skillfully lampoon all aspects of modern living while keeping the humor fast-paced and kid-friendly, something even Shrek fell short of sometimes. Like its predecessor, the somewhat forgettable Madagascar, the film gets its message across in less than one hour and twenty minutes, saying what it needs to say and entertaining non-stop with no flak whatsoever, not even a subplot! In the case of Over the Hedge, that's a good thing.

If you are unaware of the film's rapid-fire storyline, I'll fill you in. A mischievous raccoon has inadvertently destroyed a hibernating bear's snack food supply. He's got a week to replenish the stash or the bear will be having him for dinner instead. The solution? Befriend a bunch of simple-minded woodland creatures, show them the bountiful feast that is suburban garbage, and get them to steal the snacks!

Like Shrek (and every CGI DreamWorks film that followed it), Over the Hedge relies heavily on celebrity voices, only this time the casting decisions feel truly inspired, from Steve Carell's turn as the hyperactive squirrel Hammy (pictured above), to Garry Shandling's neurotic turtle Verne. SCTV alumni Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara voice a pair of "Minnesota Nice" porcupines, while William Shatner and Avril Lavigne play a father-daughter pair of possums. It doesn't stop there, as the cast list also includes Wanda Sykes, Thomas Haden Church, and Nick Nolte. Even Bruce Willis turns in an excellent performance as the raccoon RJ, despite his replacement status on the film (Jim Carrey was the filmmakers' first choice).

The film fully embraces the cartoonish potential of CGI, and at no point tries to go for realism like the recent Disney flop The Wild. I agree with the Charlotte Observer that the film conjures up the spirit of Chuck Jones, especially in a truly madcap sequence involving a wagonload of snacks, a garden hose, and a lit can of propane. What happens I will leave for you to discover, but the stunt reaches levels previously attained only by Wile E. Coyote.

The film was co-directed by Tim Johnson, the director of DreamWorks' first foray into CGI, Antz, and Karey Kirkpatrick, who makes his directorial debut after being given the thankless task of finishing the screenplay to last year's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, after Douglas Adams' unfortunate passing. He did, however, write the script for The Rescuers Down Under, so props for that!

Finally, the film's most surprising facet comes in the form of a handful of wonderful original songs by Ben Folds, one of my favorite musicians and an untapped resource as far as movie soundtracks are concerned. He's an artist that truly cares about the quality of his music, whether it be a selection from a fans-only EP or a track off the Godzilla soundtrack. There's no such thing as a "throwaway song" when it comes to Folds. Case in point is Over the Hedge's opening song "Family of Me," which lasts all of one-and-a-half minutes, but could arguably be one of Folds' catchiest melodies.


The film won't be winning an Oscar for Best Animated Feature anytime soon, but it is a welcome effort from a studio that has been standing in the shadow of Mike Myers' churlish ogre for a little too long.

A new look for Criterion

The Criterion Collection has changed their logo, as well as their entire website, and so far, I'm not liking the new look:



While the new, simplistic logo will allow for more space on the DVD cover for the awesome artwork Criterion is well-known for, the old logo made it so easy to tell what was a Criterion Collection DVD, sort of like a "Mark of Quality." Film buffs everywhere recognized it. But now it looks like they're just aping other DVD company logos.

For further proof, check the cover for the upcoming release Equinox (with the old logo) and the cover for Noah Baumbach's Kicking and Screaming (with the new logo). I just think it looks too cluttered, that's all.

I guess I shouldn't be complaining as long as the content stays the same. I'm really looking forward to the upcoming Jacques Tati box set they keep hinting at in their monthly e-mail newsletters.

At least a neat Flash intro came out of all of this.

What Could Revive DiMattiaFilms? Free Music, Perhaps?

Yes, I have awakened from my week-long sabbatical to bring you two very cool, very free, full-length albums:

The Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers - Psalterie

The rarely-heard debut album by Perry Wright and his musical minstrels has now been made available for download by his record label. Jam out to some great Prayers and Tears, all without spending a penny!

Power Craig - Field Recordings of Terrified and Delusional Nose-Pickers and Nail-Biters

Free and brief (only about 21 minutes), Field Recordings delivers sorrowful and often unusual folk rock, sprinkled with a trio of instrumental acoustic guitar tracks and the occasional noise-rock freakout ("Illinois Tomatoes"). Thanks to My Mean Magpie for making this available.

Also, has anyone else heard about Thom Yorke's solo album? Awesome.

We'll be right back!

I am utterly amazed to announce that my last day of my sophomore year at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington was today! This morning at 10 AM, to be exact.

So, my summer vacation has started as of NOW and I am back home, unpacked, and ready to do all the things I wanted to do but...um...*yawn*...zzz...

Oh! Sorry. Nodded off there. Well, I just wanted to say that DiMattiaFilms will be going on a brief hiatus for the next couple days while I try looking for a summer job. (By the way, if anyone knows of any openings in Greensboro, NC, send me the info!) I'll try to return to blogging sometime next week.

In the meantime, enjoy these highlights of the last few weeks:

• The Oozinator!
  
• American Express Ad by Wes Anderson!
  
• Gnarls Barkley Performs "Crazy" Live on Top of the Pops!
  
• Free Indie Music for Children!
  
• Free Indie Music for Everyone Else!

See y'all next week!
Devin

New Strokes B-Side

While First Impressions of Earth definitely wasn't The Strokes' best album, it had its share of great songs, namely the leadoff track "You Only Live Once." Now, on their new single for "Heart in a Cage," the band included a new b-side, entitled "I'll Try Anything Once," which is, essentially, a radically altered demo version of "You Only Live Once." Stripped down to just Julian's vocals and an elaborate synthesizer arrangement, the song sounds a lot more delicate and somber than its rocking album version. Thankfully, The Strokes are offering the track for free off their official website. Enjoy!

The Strokes - I'll Try Anything Once.mp3 (Link Removed)

The Last Word in Zombie Indie Rock

I was listening to the new episode of No Love for Ned and I came across this awesome song by Sprites paying homage to some of the greats behind zombie horror:

Sprites - George Romero.mp3

After a couple listens, you'll never get that chorus out of your head. Guaranteed.

And if you get a chance, listen to the new episode of No Love for Ned (RealPlayer required). There's a slew of great obscure indie songs, plus an in-studio performance by Half-Handed Cloud.

Also, just so you know, my short films Dollars Don't Discriminate and T.P. are now available for streaming on YouTube!

Ever wish SuperSoaker would make a water gun that simulates masturbation? Well...

As always, Mike and Chad from Yewknee are on top of things with this slightly disturbing new toy from Hasbro.

It's called the Oozinator, and in addition to firing jets of water, it also fires "globs of gooey bio-ooze!" And if you didn't think that was creepy enough, just take a look at the commercial:



Why not just call it the Super Jizzinator? I mean, look at the damn thing. If the alien in Alien had a penis, that's what it would look like.

Warning: Major pumping required.

Areas of His Expertise

One of my favorite comedians out there right now is the ever-hilarious John Hodgman, and lately, it seems like he's all over the place. He released a book last year, The Areas of My Expertise, became The Daily Show's resident expert, collaborated with They Might Be Giants on their Venue Songs DVD, and now he's appeared in a handful of new Apple commercials with actor Justin Long (the nerdy kid from Dodgeball). I'd like to provide an excerpt from the introduction to his book, just to give my readers a taste of his patent-pending style of humor:

   "I say 'good evening,' though of course I don't know what time it is where you are. This is one of the defining sorrows of books: that we cannot see one another.
   Of course it might have been different had my Publisher inserted the camera I invented to fit snugly in the spine of this book and spy on you. But this was determined to be 'too expensive' and 'too illegal' and so we are left once again to our imaginations."

For more Hodgman, check out his blog or browse these video clips:

• Apple ad: "Restarting"
  
• Apple ad: "Network"
  
• Daily Show segment: "Countering the Iraqi Insurgency"
  
• They Might Be Giants promo: "Venue Songs"

Napster debuts Gnarls Barkley album!

I guess Napster realized they weren't making any money with this subscription thing, 'cause they decided to revamp their website to look more like the iTunes Music Store, only now, they also offer free streaming of all the songs in their library. The catch is that you can listen to every song only five times each.

So, that gives each and every one of you the ability to stream the highly-anticipated debut by Gnarls Barkley, St. Elsewhere, five times. So make 'em count!

PREVIOUSLY: Gnarls goes crazy on Top of the Pops.

Why eMusic is Awesome

While everybody else blogs about Stephen Colbert's speech at the White House Correspondents Dinner, I decided to finally take advantage of eMusic's free fifty song download trial offer. And it worked like a peach!

The only thing I should mention is that, for some reason, eMusic's site alternates between fifty and twenty-five free downloads, depending on which browser you use (with Safari, I got 25; but with Firefox, I got 50). Anyway, it's ridiculously simple. Just fill out the forms, give 'em a credit card number, and then quickly download your free fifty songs. After that, all you gotta do is cancel your subscription, and you get to keep your fifty songs, free of charge. Couldn't be easier!

Here's what I ended up downloading with my free trial:

Cat Power, The Greatest
Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Iron & Wine/Calexico, In the Reins
Destroyer, Destroyer's Rubies
Okkervil River, Black Sheep Boy

"Misplaced" New Short Film!

Last weekend was the One-Take Film Festival, and Nuclear Space Zombie was there to make another wonderful short film! The lineup has changed a bit (I was the only original member of NSZ), but I think our finished film turned out pretty good. Take a look... (approx. 8 min.)