Essential May

Essential viewing this May:
- "Revolutionary Road" sees the return of the most successful on-screen couple ever, Leo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Set in mid-50's America this is an interesting character study with top notch performances from everyone involved. What on paper looks like a slick Oscar friendly period drama is surprisingly rough around the edges and with a shocking third act this is easily director Sam Mendes' finest hour since 1999's "American Beauty".
- The return of "Star Trek" to the big screen is impossible to ignore, despite its flaws. It is impressive when you think that this is only director J.J. Abrams' second feature film, the scale and expectations from the massive fanbase alone should be enough to terrify any rookie filmmaker. But Abrams hits the ground running and two hours later what you have left is an unashamingly fresh sci-fi thrill ride. The casting of mostly unknown faces is clever and the effects are spectacular, so you'll have to look hard to find a better piece of blockbuster entertainment. Abrams has rebooted the sci-fi genre and you can almost smell the popcorn.
- This months pleasent surprise comes from the straight-to-DVD release "Nothing But The Truth". A gripping drama with the best ensemble act of the year so far, with Kate Beckinsale and Vera Farmiga as the standouts. Usually dull director Rod Lurie employs a realistic style and wonderful dialogue. Complete with terrific cinematography this is a great movie which unfortunately will never reach the large audience it richly deserves.

Essential listening this May:
- "Sinful Soul" is norwegian rock band Helldorado's third album, and it might be the best one yet. Packed with terrific tunes ranging from country, blues, rock & roll this is a superb record which hopefully will make more people aware of the band. One of the best norwegian releases so far this year.
- Manic Street Preachers returns to form with "Journal For Plague Lovers". Their ninth studio album is a raw and hard exploration of alternative rock music seen through the eyes of these indie veterans. Superior to their records of recent years this is a wonderful return to the top by the Welsh band, reminiscent of their finest hour "This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours" (1998).
- Even though Juliette Lewis' return to the music scene with her new band The New Romantiques and the album "Terra Incognita" will not hit stores until September, some samples have already appeared on her MySpace site - and boy are they good! The album, produced by The Mars Volta's Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, promises to be both darker and more rough than her first two outings. A true original and old rocking soul, Lewis just might be in the process of releasing her masterpiece. Roll on autumn!

"Belong"

screams from the other room
the fear is never gone for long
these actors could never be alone
this city is no longer yours

take her photograph
take something more

leave the room with the music still on
keep your head up for one more day
all this time belongs to you
understand the words the best one can

the way you look at your friends
the way you look at everything else

Ebeltoft

In 2005 I moved to Ebeltoft, Denmark to attend the European Film College. I was there for one year and last weekend I returned for a reunion with my old classmates. We had a superb time and it reminded me what a special place it is.
Ebeltoft is a small town in every sense of the word small. Sure there are about 14,000 people living in the whole county, but you'd never know from walking the streets. It is located on the east coast of Jylland, the island which is the major part of Denmark. Whenever I go there I take the bus from Copenhagen to the end of Denmarks other major island, Sjælland and from there it is a 45 minute ferry ride before you step off, arriving in Ebeltoft. The town is small and the centre is close to the occean and on the shoreline there are plenty of beautiful beaches. On my first night back this time, me and some friends went down to the water and watched the sun set. It is quiet and calm and when you walk up from the beach, through the town centre you can just keep walking and end up in the deepest woods in a matter of minutes. The film school is located on top of the woodland hills and is almost isolated from the rest of the town. It is both a sombre and peaceful place where you can rest, get your head straight or in our case, make movies. I've been back a few times since I graduated and having lived in two big cities since I left, it is always refreshing and helpful to return. It makes you glad knowing that places like it exists. It really is a special place.


Photograph by Enqvist

Switched Off

I've been flying quite a lot lately and it amazes me that there is still a genuine concern among flight attendants that mobile phones and iPods can cause serious damage to the aircraft. First of all, if there really was such a risk you would never be allowed to even bring your phone or iPod onboard, or at least they would conduct a thorough search of each and every passenger for one. And yet, whenever I try to catch some sleep or relax with some descreet music in my ear, an eager stewardess will rush over and strictly require me to stop this illegal activity. At least during take off and landing. Curiously, you never actually have to switch off your player, it is plenty sufficient for them to see you simply take your headphones off your head. And they've done their job.
Actually sweetheart, all things considered; if you think this monster of technology that is my tiny iPod can bring down this Boeing-737 I'd rather step off and take the bus.

"Paper Heartbeats"

start this war with just two words
count the names not the blessings
these sounds are all too familiar
a flood of anything could be welcome

under your feet under the dirt
yellow flowers behind a barbed wire fence
a wall is fading but the writing sticks
the dark was always coming

paper heartbeats and colored in smiles
glowing in the dark but still not real
someone says this road leads home
a pen gone empty is an honest sign

you knew it would be hard
to walk through this world alone