Culture Snaps - May 19th

by Jillian Butler, Ampersandology

WATCHING... 

Chloe (2009)
Dir. Atom Egoyan

I don't know. Generally, I really enjoy Atom Egoyan films. Let me reshape that: i really enjoy the first two-thirds of Atom Egoyan films. The last third usually comes out of nowhere and nulls the entire premise. Which is fine, but something it all seems too pat, too neatly resolved. I felt this way about Where the Truth Lies, and I definitely walked away from 2008's Adoration with that thought in my mind. And his most recent offering, Chloe is a remarkable example of this formula: for the first hour and a half, it's this charged examination at fidelity and marriage, specifically, the difficulty of being both a parent and a lover. And then suddenly, it veers off course, almost --dare I suggest-- into camp. I won't spoil it, nor would I hesitate in recommending it. But you know: grain of salt. With Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfried. 

READING...

Twilight of the Superheroes by Deborah Eisenberg (2006)

Concise yet sparing no detail, these short stories collect a random sampling of New Yorkers in a way that seems eternally fresh. She's sympathetic to her characters, but not sentimental, and her turns of the phrase are precisely and enviably tuned. I picked up this collection because I'd heard the Eisenberg just snagged herself a MacArthur "genius" grant, and when you finish this book, it's no great mystery why.  

LISTENING...

Spin Doctors, Pocket Full of Kryptonite (1991)

The Spin Doctors all but disappeared after their phenomenal breakout album, but it's still in my rotation. It sounds very early 90s, but in a good way (I know, that sounds like an oxymoron, but trust me). Maybe I'm biased, but any band who writes a song called "Jimmy Olsen's Blues" is one I will pay attention to at all costs.

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