MIX/VHS | Week 057
Spring, sprang, sprung! We're one step closer to the endless heat wave of summer in Austin! Bask in the sweet smelling/allergy inducing cut grass, grab a glass of lemonade (Hell, grab a beer. It's 2:30 in the afternoon.), and watch these great recommendations from your friends at MIX/VHS!
Movies With Mikey - Road to Perdition
WATCH IT HERE!
With the classic video-essay series "Every Frame a Painting" slipping into the halls of youtube history, more and more individuals are stepping up to the proverbial plate. One of which is the hilarious, inquisitive, and thought-provoking "Movies with Mikey." Mikey takes classic films, or contemporary classics, or even modern blockbuster fair, and provides a grand side-step to the ultimate meaning of the film. From Force Awakens being an impossible task and the Dark Knight being about the joker, to justifying The Lost World and A.I. as some of Spielberg's greatest work. I recommend your starting point be here with Road to Perdition as it is a criminally overlooked film that touts beauty and thematic resonance in every frame, and Mikey carefully articulates why it is an absolute must-see.
- Jake
The American Badass
WATCH IT HERE!
It’s been 15 years since the world was graced with one of the most iconic re-packages in wrestling history. The Undertaker character had always been a dark and mysterious one. Besides a few wardrobe changes early in his career and, in response to the changes of the businees, a new look and overall attitude in the late 1990’s during the WWE’s “Attitude Era” — NOTHING could have prepared fans and wrestlers alike with what the Undertaker came out looking like when he returned in 2000. A bandana, black sunglasses, leather trench coat, blue jeans, work boots and the greatest addition, the motorcycle he’d ride down to the ring with. This was the American Badass. He kept this look for three years before he kayfabe (kayfabe = storyline) was buried alive in 2003 and returned in 2004 as the original Undertaker character. Nonetheless, the American Badass character has stood the test of time and continues to be a popular and unpopular character depending on who you talk to. With Wrestlemania less than 3 weeks away, The Undertaker without an opponent or his original Deadman persona, Kid Rock (who did the American Badass theme song) is going into the WWE Hall of Fame this year and will be at Wrestlemania, and this possibly and probably being the Undertaker’s last match, there is absolutely NO REASON why the Undertaker shouldn’t make his way to the ring one last time for one last ride as the American Badass.
- Alek
Team Darryl
WATCH IT HERE!
Okay. So. I have NOT seen Thor: Ragnarok. It takes a lot for me to shrug off my Marvel movie fatigue and watch any super hero movie if the ticket isn't already paid for me or I'm drunk and it's the only thing on Netflix I know I can fall asleep to. BUT! Watching this video and seeing the beautiful and wonderful mix of Jeff Goldblum's bizarre demeanor with the witty writing and direction of New Zealand's greatest treasure Taika Waititi has got me rethinking my curmudgeon logic. This is so funny. This is so funny and goofy and great. There's no reason this extra short film about Goldblum's character Grandmaster rooming with schlep-y New Zealander Darryl should exist, but I'm so glad it does.
- Spencer
3 A.M. At The Krusty Krab
WATCH IT HERE!
This guy is playing a twisted Spongebob game and it's hilarious.
- Miranda
Rory Sutherland, In Defense of Advertising
WATCH IT HERE!
Mr. Rory Sutherland is that rarest and most dangerous of all things: an intelligent, articulate defender of the advertiser's art and the intangible value it creates. And though it’s a great pleasure to listen to Mr. Sutherland uninterrupted, I thought I’d share some of the footnotes I personally needed to research in order to understand British-Upper-Crust-Posh-Talk.
1:55 - Château Pétrus. A French Bordeaux wine priced at an average of $2,600 a bottle.
7:30 - Veblen goods. In economics theory, a kind of luxury good whose demand rises because of, rather than in spite of, its high price. Examples: Rolls-Royce, Louis Vuitton, Bordeaux wines.
8:20 - Pinko. Derogatory term for a Communist sympathizer.
9:40 - the Cornish Pasty. A savory lunchtime food similar to the Shepherd's Pie, but instead of being baked inside a mashed potatoes-covered pie dish, the contents are cooked inside a folded and crimped pastry crust. Invented as a lunch staple by miners in Cornwall, England – hence the name. (Incidentally, if you ever find yourself in Tempe, Arizona, you owe it to yourself to visit the Cornish Pasty Co. restaurant!)
10:00 - the Toastie sandwich. A British grilled sandwich similar to the American Grilled Cheese. Does not strictly require cheese inside, though this is very common. Additional fillings, especially experimental ones, encouraged.
10:20 - Retsina wine. An ancient Greek white or rosé wine that was mixed with seawater and preserved in pine-resin coated earthenware jars, amphorae. Tastes about as good as you'd expect.
15:14 - Samuel Johnson. This first quotation appears to be a variant sourced from English writer and lexicographer Samuel Johnson, in his Lives of the English Poets, The Life of [Alexander] Pope (1779-81). The original quotation: "New things are made familiar, and familiar things are made new."
16:00 - G.K. Chesterton. An incredibly prolific turn-of-the-century author noted for his scathing wit, as well as the incredible diversity of his subject matter. In Orthodoxy, Chesterton contrasted the opposing poles of the Tolstoyan and the Nietzscheite, but ultimately found them both with will frozen at the crossroads. Chesterton had an influence on C.S. Lewis, Gandhi, Neil Gaiman, and Jorge Luis Borges.
- Matt
Like this mix? Tell us what you think in the comments below, and let us know what you’re recommending for us to watch this week!