10.19.09 My Top Ten RIGHT NOW
1. FILM Bright Star
I felt like I watched the sumptuous evolution of a lifetime of romance all encapsulated in two hours of screen time and in reality only two short years that comprised the doomed love affair of John Keats and Fanny Brawne. Jane Campion has done quite a number, casting the beguiling Abbie Cornish and Ben Whishaw who both command the screen with subtlety and an honesty so rarely found in the confines of costume drama. Freeing the camera from the tripod, the world we are thrown into is at once as real as that which surrounds us, applicable and identifiable, and yet so gorgeously depicted that it might as well be a series of Vermeers on the wall of a museum. A feast for the eyes, the brain and for any heart that has ever loved…
2. ALBUM Give Up The Ghost Brandi Carlile
This is another solid set of tracks from one of my absolute favorite female artists. With her signature cross between hard rock and subtle melody songwriting, all of which translates into her incredible voice that is at once bold as it is beautiful. Start out with “Dying Day,” with an excellent thumping guitar and nice choral inflections to boost that spectacular vocal. As far as songwriting goes, you can’t get much better than “That Year,” a guitar ballad that tugs at your heartstrings so effortlessly that you don’t even realize there’s a tear in your eye. And if there are any doubts about the strength of Carlile’s talent, listen to “Caroline,” a duet with Elton John that she totally dominates on the vocal track. Closing out the album are two skillfully crafted tunes, “Touching the Ground” and “Oh Dear,” the former with a light shuffle and tight harmonies, the latter continuing the harmonies but accompanied by the sweet sounds of a uke. So glad that she just keeps pumping this music out…
3. FOOD DBGB
There is no doubt that Daniel Boulud is a genius in the kitchen, and this lovely new-ish addition to his NYC eateries is quite welcome. Despite the wintery turn in the weather, we started our meal with light fresh notes from a serving of Kumamoto oysters and the tuna tartar in harissa-sesame sauce, which nestled nicely on the palette. Continuing on with the harissa theme, we had an amazing lamb and mint merguez (think the best sausage link you’ve ever had) braised in lemon on a bed of spinach and chickpeas. For main courses, the bass was perfectly cooked with a smile-inducing flaky skin, the thinly sliced lamb was a bit too cool but seasoned well, and the beef was stunning once you took a big bite along with the ginger crouton that so delightfully accompanied it. Top all that off with an assorted cheese plate and a fancy pear ice-cream sandwich with a caramel drizzle and you have one happy diner.
4. MUSICAL Finian’s Rainbow
It is very easy to trash this musical, a diatribe against racism filled with insta-love, leprechauns, pots of gold, flights of fancy and song and dance from an age that seems so much better when captured on celluloid (unless of course you’re watching Francis Ford Coppola’s very odd film adaptation of this musical). But there is a charm here that must be acknowledged and once you dial back your expectations is really quite enjoyable. There is no doubt these songs are good, from the standards like “Look to the Rainbow” and “How Are Things in Glocca Morra” to the unusual and now ubiquitous jazz standard “Old Devil Moon” (made household identifiable by the likes of both Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra). And while it plays a bit musty, there is something actually quite refreshing with an absurdist and poignant condemnation of racism in the south when compared to modern fare like Memphis which only purports to do the same while pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes by feeding into it.
5. FOOD Sant Ambroeus
This little bit of European heaven in the West Village is the perfect place to have a late Saturday brunch if you’re in the mood to splurge. The omelet is light and fluffy, filled with the freshest of mozzarella and ham accompanied by fresh greens and a few perfectly greased-up potato slices. The coffee is all fuss in a silver pot and served with a side of warm frothy milk. And because you’re already indulging, you might as well get a sumptuous chocolate-laden fresh pastry. If you’re lucky, they’ll ask you to move to a new table to accommodate a larger party, at which point they will request that you stay and offer you a fresh pot of coffee or tea and a plate heaping with fresh baked cookies that were seriously delicious (that’s at least what happened to me and my brunch companion… you gotta love when NYC treats you as well as you treat it).
6. SOUNDTRACK The Twilight Saga: New Moon
I’m a little worried about today’s youth if this is the music they gravitate toward. I, of course, think it’s the best of modern music, but oh boy, it’s navel gazing depressing. With tracks from the notables of the folk movement like St. Vincent, The Killers, Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver, Lykke Li (taking a beautifully depressing turn on “Possibility”) and Thom Yorke (always depressing) you really can’t go wrong. The decidedly Bowie-esque track from Muse is sensually cool with great clapping beats and a circular grandeur that overwhelms in the best way. There’s a more poppy tune, “Shooting the Moon,” that sounds like updated Beatles from OK Go. But my favorite might be the haunting “Slow Life” from Grizzly Bear, with it’s slow crescendo into psychedelic trippy-ness. I have no clue about the movie, or the books for that matter, but if this is the music that’s scoring it, count me in.
7. BOOK Incredibly Close, Extremely Loud
I rarely read a book twice; there are just too many others on the bookshelf I never seem to get to. Yet I was drawn back to this Safran Foer tale for the memory of how much it transformed my outlook on dealing with tragedy, which of course can only make sense through the overly inquisitive brain of a 9-year-old dealing with the loss of his father. With such a unique voice, the scattershot nature of thought is so perfectly captured, and yet doesn’t lose sight of the emotional toll events in life can have. And at the end of the day, it so magnificently captures the small details of people in our lives and how they add up to such love and above all else, the absolute importance of never failing to let the people in your life know that you love them.
8. ACTORS The cast of All Fall Down
This show definitely needs work, tackling the heavy topic of a kid attempting suicide after going to college and finding that his family is afraid to confront the truth of what happened as much as he is… interesting plot handled confusedly over the course of 90 minutes with music that was pleasant enough. But it was the cast that sold this one. I expected greatness, and received it, from the constantly clever Mary Testa. But it was a lovely turn from Jenn Colella that really had me going and figuring that I must have seen her a million times on stages but never noticed her real talent. Blessed with an attractive voice and comic timing, she seems ripe for some Broadway-love. Not sure about the future of the show, but this small cast showed much promise.
9. TV Modern Family
I thought I was done with these one-camera sitcoms with mock documentary interviews interspersed, but this ABC comedy has proven that a fresh take on the format can work quite effectively. Thanks to a wonderful cast including such sitcom regulars as Ed O’Neill and Julie Bowen, this show is thirty minutes of legitimate laughs as dysfunction reigns supreme. And I’m so happy to see Ty Burrell, who was so good on the short-lived Back to You, finding a role perfectly suited to his awkward (in a good way) comic timing. It’s also nice to see Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who was my favorite part of Broadway’s 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, ably making comedy out of a gay couple adopting a child. Tune into this one, you wont regret it.
10. SONG “Sugar Sugar” by Jehro
Considering the gray clouds just will not go away these days, we could all use a little bit of sunshine in our lives. And what better bit of sunshine than this awesome cover of that bubblegum pop confection originally from The Archies back in ’69. Jehro spins it into a guitar based reggae rhythm inflected with Latino riffs and with harmonies that make you remember the glory days of summer or the beach filled months ahead, running away from the cold realities of winter.
