The Snooze Button

Mugs and dames return to the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood April 2-19 for the annual Film Noir Festival, Deadline: Noir City. A notice of the event from the Egyptian popped up on my Gmail calendar yesterday, coincidently after a week I’d just spent re-watching my collection of the Fox Film Noir series. Most of them have an excellent commentary track by noir historian Eddie Muller, who will be at the festival. Muller’s film commentary is only rivaled in my opinion by Peter Bogdanovich. I try to buy every film each has done. If you’ve only experienced commentary tracks familiar in newer releases, stuff done by historians and film critics on older movies can tend to run like they are reading a prepared statement, which can be rather dry, especially when some of them concentrate exclusively on actor backgrounds. Some even sit there and describe what you are seeing on the screen, as if it were meant for a blind person. Muller talks about the movie, like you are re-watching it with a friend who knows a hell of a lot about what you are seeing. I’m sure it takes a lot of natural talent along with a lifetime of study to be able to sit there and ad lib for an hour and a half while making the commentary conversational and informative. Muller will be at the festival giving introductions to the films, which range from popular, well-known films to much rarer selections.

Victor Mature in Bruce Humberstone’s “I Wake Up Screaming”

There was a time when Charles Bukowski would have been floored if he could have received even one portion of the proceeds from this tour of his former haunts, which costs a whopping $58 to attend. Looks cool but the price could be seen as anathema to the spirit of the man. (More to the spirit is me re-publishing the news too late for anyone to take advantage of it.)

Bukowski’s best work of fiction, which is what I like most of his writing, is “Factotum,” a hilarious first-person look at the different-job-a-week life of Bukowski’s alter-ego Henry Chinaski. It was recently adapted into a well-meaning but slightly off movie version starring Matt Dillon that missed the self-depreciating humor that makes the book such a fun, extremely funny read.

Probably not supposed to do this but here’s one of my favorite excerpts, from Chapter 3, Copyright 1975 by Charles Bukowski.

I went out on the street, as usual, one day and strolled along. I felt happy and relaxed. The sun was just right. Mellow. There was peace in the air. As I apprached the center of the block there was a man standing outside the doorway of a shop. I walked past.

“Hey, BUDDY!”

I stopped and turned.

“You want a job?”

I walked back to where he stood. Over his shoulder I could see a large dark room. There was a long table with men and women standing on both sides of it. They had hammers with which they pounded objects in front of them. In the gloom the objects appeared to be clams. They smelled like clams. I turned and continued walking down the street.

- W.M.

Collision Fest, a Los Angeles independent film, music and art showcase, debuts at the end of February at Studio 1636, a beautiful studio and exhibition space located in Hollywood at 1636 Wilcox Ave., a bit south of Hollywood Boulevard. The nearly two week festival kicks off with a special opening-night celebration Wednesday, Feb. 25 and continues through March 8 with screenings, art installations and musical performances. Some of the headliners include David Lynch, Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clang, Kofie One, Sonik Mercury, Warpaint and Shannyn Sossamon.The presentation itself looks to be one of the stars as well. From the press release:

All films will be screened onto ‘The Engine’, a kinetic sculpture/projection hybrid that redefines the notion of ‘art presentation’ and ushers in a new era of independent screening venues. Designed to be equal in form and function, the one thousand pound steel sculpture houses a rotating sixteen-foot screen and features a state-of-the-art audio/video system. In an effort to maintain exclusivity, ‘The Engine’ debuted at the Architecture and Design Museum of Los Angeles and has been featured at such high-profile events as the Coachella Music & Art Festival and Museum Square¹s Tar Fest.

Studio 1636