If you walk around Taipei these days you’ll be sure to see the word KUSO written in big letters all over the place. For instance, this summer there was a city-sponsored cultural festival in Ximending called “KUSO Ximending.” But what does “KUSO” mean? Luckily, Wikipedia is there to help us out: Kuso is the term [...]
Does the writer’s strike have you down? Miss The Daily Show? Here are some things you can do: Download Miro. Watch some classic Daily Show clips here. Read and watch the official blog of the writer’s strike. Watch the following YouTube video made by some striking Daily Show writers:
This is one of those “only in Taiwan” stories: Police in Hsinchu 新竹 captured an escaped convict when they noticed a man attending a police-sponsored BBQ. During the Mid-Autumn Festival 中秋節 almost every Taiwanese family has a BBQ, sort of like the Fourth of July in the US. The practice has become so wide-spread that [...]
I only recently learned that Ousmane Sembène, “the ‘father’ of African Cinema” died last month. Sembène was much more radical, much more of a brechtian filmmaker, and much more influential than Michael Moore could ever hope to be. Sembène was a writer who went into filmmaking because of the high rates of illiteracy in his [...]
Reading the reactions to Sicko in the press is an interesting exercise. Almost without exception, including papers from both the left and the right, reviewers feel compelled to adopt the tone of voice of a disapproving adult, condemning Moore for his excesses while reluctantly conceding that the film is important and that these issues need [...]
I was sad to hear that Taiwanese filmmaker Edward Yang 楊德昌 died so young. I’d only seen one of his films, Yi yi (“A One and a Two”), but it ranks amongst the best Taiwanese films, moreover Yang was still quite young at 59, having died after a seven year long battle with cancer. Interestingly, [...]
Here is a quote from FOX News: Filmmaker Michael Moore’s brilliant and uplifting new documentary, “Sicko,” deals with the failings of the U.S. healthcare system, both real and perceived. But this time around, the controversial documentarian seems to be letting the subject matter do the talking, and in the process shows a new maturity. And [...]
If you like cool, wacky, funny, clever design ideas look no further than the NotCot blog. I’ve already downloaded this great clock screensaver. The blood pillow is fun. Juno doesn’t need the dog sex toys, but maybe your dog does? Lots more at notcot.org! (Via Ze Frank) {design}
Why is it that so many Vonnegut remembrances describe the same experience? If you read Kurt Vonnegut when you were young — read all there was of him, book after book as fast as you could the way so many of us did… That includes Peter Sagal, whose comments I liked better than those in [...]
I know I’m not the only one who will miss Ze, as he ends his one year video blog which rocked the interweb. I think the secret to Ze’s success is that he is a great teacher. He taught his audience how to participate and how to be creative. Here is an interview he did [...]