1. Scarlett Johansson plans to make her full-length directorial debut with Summer Crossing, an adaptation of Truman Capote’s lost novella. The story, which is set in post-World War II New York City, follows “an 18-year-old girl breaking free of her rich, smothering, family to discover her own identity and sexuality.” [via Variety]
BBC
New TV Series Explores Leonardo da Vinci’s Dark Side
No, Da Vinci’s Demons is not the new Dan Brown novel (thankfully), but it does also feed our ongoing fascination with the dark side of history’s most brilliant minds. Starz — best known for their smutty programming that in-part explores the lives of historical figures such as Spartacus and King Arthur — is getting classy… Read More
Video of the Day: A Personal Documentary about British Punk
It seems there have been countless documentaries about punk, from the earliest days in New York and England to contemporary scenes around the world. What distinguishes 1-2 FU, an hour-long 2004 BBC production we discovered thanks to Dangerous Minds, is its intentionally personal bent. Although the film definitely provides a history of punk, it views the movement through the eyes of a true punk fanatic — British radio and TV host Jonathan Ross. The doc, which includes interviews with everyone from Vivienne Westwood to OG punk zinesters, makes perfect lunch-hour viewing. You can watch it after the jump. … Read More
Video of the Day: Rare Documentary 'Who Is Poly Styrene?'
We’ve been mourning the untimely death of X-Ray Spex leader Poly Styrene for nearly a week now, re-listening to her albums on repeat and reading everything that’s been written on her. But we’re especially grateful to Marc Campbell at Dangerous Minds, one of our very favorite blogs, for digging up the rarely seen BBC documentary Who Is Poly Styrene? Fittingly, the film is more a collage of performance footage, audio from interviews, Styrene reading her lyrics, and other rare clips. Even though the video quality isn’t top-notch, Who Is Poly Styrene? is — at 40 minutes long — perfect lunchtime viewing. … Read More
The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories
1. Brace yourselves, muggles: The first trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 has landed online. Watch it here, and if you like what you see, mark your calenders for July 15th, when the final installment of the Potter franchise lands in theaters.
2. Last night at a benefit… Read More
The First Real David Foster Wallace Documentary
In the first big David Foster Wallace documentary since his suicide, the BBC’s Professor Geoff Ward discusses the author’s childhood, legacy, preoccupations and battles with the gentleness of a true fan but the exactitude of a scholar. On the radio missive, which first aired on the BBC on February 6th, Ward interviews Wallace’s contemporaries (Rick Moody and Mark Costello, who was also Wallace’s college roommate), Don DeLillo, Michael Pietsch, editor of Infinite Jest, Wallace’s agent, Bonnie Nadell and his sister, Amy Wallace. He also mines archives of interviews with DFW — some of the most wonderful are with Wallace discussing irony — and accents his ruminations and conversations with passages from Infinite Jest as well as the forthcoming The Pale King.
If you’re a reader, a writer or even just a member of the television saturation generation, it’s worth a listen, and if you’re a fan of Wallace, the program may tug at your heartstrings, suggesting what might have been, but celebrating the man as he was. As Don DeLillo tells Ward, “I can’t think of anyone quite like him, at all… Wallace stands alone.” Click through to hear the documentary in its entirety. … Read More
How Big Is It?: From Environmental Disasters to Mardi Gras
The BBC has recently launched an experimental web project called Dimensions, which allows users to overlay ancient cities, famous festivals, and environmental disasters over modern maps to get a sense of scale. The site can be used to try to better understand the impact of both catastrophes, like the flooding in Pakistan, and everyday occurrences, like the growth of urban spaces. It’s also a great way to kill a good half hour of time. Click through for some of our favorite maps. … Read More
The Top 10 BBC Collections of All Time
Maybe you’ve left your gift-buying to the last minute (again). Maybe you’re just looking for something to cozy up with as you keep yourself warm during the holiday lull. Either way, when it comes to quality screen time, there’s no beating the BBC. For decades, the British Broadcasting Corporation has created and aired some of the edgiest, funniest, and most envelope-pushing programming in the world — the best of which is available on US shores through BBC America.
Over the years, there have been a number of BBC series of such high quality that they begged to be collected in full, bringing their complete experiences into welcoming homes. After the jump, we round up the ten best of the best, along with info and the requisite video clips. But that’s not all: we also have copies of almost every one of these BBC box sets available to win! To be in with a chance at one for yourself, leave us a comment telling us your personal favorite moment from British TV history. Be sure to use a valid email address when submitting, so we can contact you if you win. Bonus points if you catch the crossover cameos in our selected video clips — these UK stars have a habit of popping up in each other’s… Read More
What’s on at Flavorpill: Links That Made the Round in Our Office
Today at Flavorpill, we decided that following @FASHIONTweek was better than fighting the crowds at Lincoln Center. We had our minds blown by The Snuggie Sutra. We were amazed at the accuracy of the hierarchy of digital distractions. We hoped that a Diablo Cody/Courtney Love talk show never becomes a reality.… Read More
Daily Dose Pick: The Mighty Boosh
After its late-night TV debut, UK comedy sensation The Mighty Boosh is available in full in the US.
Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt have been performing together for over a decade, since starting out with a stage version of their show. Their increasingly surreal humor made its biggest splash outside the UK when “The Legend of Old Gregg,” an elaborate musical skit from Season 2 of their TV series went viral online. With the release of all three seasons on DVD, fans are free to indulge in hours of mind-melting hilarity. … Read More
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