Mystery Video From Neill Blomkamp

Wired Magazine for the iPad included this mysterious little film that is apparently some sort of teaser by Neill Blomkamp, the director of District 9. It shows the discovery of a dead alien or unknown life form by two guys driving down a dirt road. Creepy. But why would anyone touch a dead alien?  The creature is stamped as if part of some project at a lab.  Maybe it’s about growing new life forms to feed the planet and then some of them escape.  Or some company has captured and bred aliens for food production!

Here’s a Slashfilm article that suspects it’s a teaser for an online narrative about a company doing genetic engineering.

MUBI Presents Free Online Screening of Revolución

Tomorrow, Saturday November 20 through Sunday November 21, MUBI.com presents a free screening of Revolución.  Ten directors contributed films to the project which looks back at the violent upheaval of the Mexican Revolution and compares conditions then to the situation today in Mexico.

The MUBI screening event has a Facebook page with more information.

Go here to attend the MUBI screening of Revolución.

Goethe’s Derl Erlkönig: A Film by Raymond Salvatore Harmon

Really frightening film adaptation of Goethe’s Der Erlkönig. Raymond Salvatore Harmon made this film that revels in the dark terror of fairy tales. It’s a densely layered film that conveys the sense of riding through the forest beautifully.  Those trees keep going by and the dolls bounce along on their horse.  Amazing! I love terrifying fairy tales!  A child, held tight in his father’s arms, senses a supernatural being of some sort approaching.  You’ve got to pay attention to this one right up to the end!

MOCA Film on Artist Alexis Smith

The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles is producing a series of short films about LA artists in their studios. They sort of lean toward the cute clever artist in their oh so picturesquely messy work spaces mentality. But sometimes it’s nice to see a little mess and hear a few comments from an artist. I happen to like this one about Alexis Smith. I like her comments about not knowing where her art is going and how she keeps all this stuff around to make it with. I think what she means is that she just digs around in pile of crap and throws a whole bunch of junk together and suddenly goes ‘Oh wow! There it is!’  Of course, to do that you’ve got to have a really fine pile of junk.