The Tree of Life: Further reading

Publicly bookmarking these for later reading—two pieces on The Tree of Life, my favorite movie of last year*:

1. A.O. Scott, "Fugue For History and Memory" (NYT)

2. David Haglund, "Adam and Eve in The Tree of Life" (Slate)

*though I saw Lee Chang-dong's Poetry via Netflix Streaming on New Year's Eve—amazing movie....Has The Poetry Foundation done a piece on it yet?

"Top Hat"

So that's who called me at 3 a.m.!

Frankly, though, I don’t see how any review could really spoil what may be among the most transcendently, eye-poppingly, call-your-friend-ranting-in-the-middle-of-the-night-just-to-go-over-it-one-more-time crazily awful motion pictures ever made. I would tell you to go out and see it for yourself, but you might take that as a recommendation rather than a plea for corroboration. Did I really see what I thought I saw?

—A.O. Scott

(Via Dzyd Rafferty)

Wednesday humor

Mr. Vaughn is supposed to be the offspring of Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek, a curious casting choice unless the editors left out a flashback in which the infant Brad fell into a vat of human growth hormone. [...]

The difference in size between [Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon] presents an interesting visual challenge, as they fit into the frame like Gandalf and Frodo, or Marmaduke and a Hummel figurine.

—A.O. Scott, NYT