Russia has always been a fertile place for cinema and politics mixing. It all dates back to the heady days of the October Revolution. Sergei Eisenstein and company pretty much laid the tracks down for a synergy of cinema and politics which as been, for better or worse the model for how politics and cinema can work together. Of course it's not a strictly 'Left Wing Ideology' thing as we can see in the case of Leni Riefenstahl and Adolf Hitler.
Today, I bring you Francis Ford Coppola and ValidmirPutin in a mutual-ego-fellating number.
"In Russia your works are well known and highly valued," Putin told Coppola during a televised portion of the meeting Saturday. He said he was not just referring to "The Godfather" — which is extremely popular in Russia — but also to films "that so accurately tell of the horrors of war."
Coppola, in turn, lauded Putin's speech marking the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by Soviet troops, during which Putin said he was ashamed of anti-Semitism's existence in Russia.
"Excellent speech," Coppola said. "But in person you look much younger than you did on TV." Coppola was in Moscow to receive a Golden Eagle award from Russia's National Academy of Cinematic Arts and Sciences for his contribution to world cinematography. Coppola gave Putin a DVD of "Lost in Translation," for which his daughter, Sofia Coppola, who won an Oscar for best original screenplay in 2004.
Coppola told Putin that both he and his daughter had won their first Oscar at age 32, and the Russian president responded, "Now your granddaughter must do it."
Kind of sad, really, but there you go.
Shuttles Come-back Update
Speaking of sad, here's the Update.
In the past few weeks, two special deliveries have boosted morale among shuttle workers and provided tangible evidence they are rounding the corner.
One is a special tool to inspect the next shuttle while in orbit for any damage to its thermal-protective skin. The other is a brand new fuel tank guaranteed by NASA not to shed big chunks of foam insulation that could harm the shuttle.
Those are two of the biggest technical changes resulting from a lengthy review of what destroyed Columbia and killed seven astronauts on that still painfully vivid Saturday morning, Feb. 1, 2003.
Err, yeah. Still doesn't raise my confidence in these birds, but it's better than naught.
Sound Quality Versus Musical Quality
Team Manager of Alsorans has returned from India and forwarded this page. It's an article about the state of music in the context of developing recording technology, which aslo operates within the context of a music industry. I had a lot to say about it, but blogger swallowed up my previous post on it. If nothing else, it's a good little read.
Marshall McLuhan: "The incomplete form invites participation." Converserly, the complete form- the "perfect" form, by our estimation of the word- says "sit back bub, we got it covered." The less conscious participation there is, the more our ability to do so atrophies. The world appears increasingly cut and dried- think about that phrase for a moment. It means something is dead and preserved.
Yep.
- Art Neuro
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