compulsion to list

Why is it so satisfying to make lists at the close of a year and the beginning of a new one? Here are two sets of three... memorable parts of 2007.

Three films that stuck with me:

Darjeeling Limited: critics complain that Wes Anderson relies too much on his own established conventions... 60s/70s gentle pop classics to draw out nostalgic emotion, feminine distance playing against complex neurotic masculine roles, etc. But I'll attend a Wes Anderson convention any day. This film had me sighing and gasping like a proper fan.

Eastern Promises: I just watched this, but it came out in 2007. Amazing in almost every way, if harrowing and appropriately sinister. Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts are top notch. But I really dislike the name of the film.

The Namesake: Perhaps because we're dealing with some of the tensions of living far from much of our family (though not as far as a transplant from India to the U.S. in the seventies), this film was deeply emotional with great subtlety. A brilliant adaptation of the book by Jhumpa Lahiri, which I also loved.

Three music experiences:

Tunng: I don't get to see live music very often, so to see Tunng, a warm roiling rumbling set of musicians with a tribal electronic meld... mmmm it was great. If you want to sample an album, try one of their first (This is Tunng, Comments of the Inner Chorus); their latest (Good Arrows) lacks a bit of the mystery and mastery that the first two have in spades.

Arvo Part De Profundis: I'm always looking for music that I can count on to be a meditative back drop for painting. Weirdly enough, Bjork has held her own for a while-- especially with Medulla and Vespertine. But she's been eclipsed lately by composer Arvo Part, whose moody, dissonant masses and antiphons are both transcendent and grounding.

Blogotheque Take-away shows: An online gallery of fantastic, off-the-cuff recordings of almost anyone I'd want to see perform. These short, candid films by Vincent Moon allow artists to shine in their vulnerability and pared down (often just voice and the percussion of a slapped wall) musicianship.