Filth & Beauty

The plastic bag from American Beauty has got nothing on this guy. He's even voiced by my beloved Werner Herzog. Unbelievable!

Rogue Warrior

One of my favorite directors, the enigmatic Werner Herzog, has graced the pages of this blog before, but never through the form of a first person narrative. The narrative came about with the announcement of his first ever film school, Werner Herzog's Rogue Film School (quite a perfect title for a director who has battled the deadly terrain of the Amazon and Alaska, to name a few). It's homepage sums up the school's mission in Herzog's own words:

"The Rogue Film School is not for the faint-hearted; it is for those who have traveled on foot, who have worked as bouncers in sex clubs or wardens in a lunatic asylum, for those who are willing to learn about lock picking or forging shooting permits in countries not favoring their projects. In short: for those who have a sense of poetry. For those who have a fire burning within. For those who have a dream."

So naturally a writer over at Flavorwire decided to enroll in the school... but when he didn't have the cash to pay for it he just "Herzog-ed" it. Check out the full story here.

Up All Night

When times are tough we turn to fantasy. Vampires, werewolves, zombies - anything to distract us from the misery of reality. Getting chomped by a Viking vampire is way better than catching up on stock market trends... am I right?! The answer is a resounding 'Yes'. This isn't the first time pop culture has been fascinated by the undead. Like fashion and music, pop culture is cyclical and we've once again found ourselves in a dark corner. With the recent arrival of even more vampire fodder (BBC's Being Human, CW's Vampire Diaries), this bloodsucking trend is seeing new heights of saturation. But I'm not complaining, I just want to school some of the young ones. Flashback to 1979, when Academy Award nominated German director Werner Herzog (Aguirre: Wrath of God, Fitzcarraldo, Rescue Dawn) reconceptualized the famous 1922 film Nosferatu, for modern audiences. Starring one of Herzog's muses, the bone-chilling Klaus Kinski, Nosferatu The Vampyre still ranks amongst the best vampire films of all time. Herzog's films are dark journeys layered with uneasiness, and this version of Nosferatu blends his style and popular Vampire mythology perfectly. Protect your necks:

Bite Me!

I'm not going to deny it. I'm not going to pretend like I don't get excited when I hear the word 'Vampire.' But don't you dare say I'm a newcomer. I have my mom to thank for my interest in Vampires. She's loved old school Vampire flicks since she was a wee lass in Venezuela, and who could blame her?! My favorite is Werner Herzog's 1979 remake of Nosferatu - Klaus Kinski was born to play a Vampire. Not surprisingly, in 2009 Vampires are are once again all the rage. Who wants to think about the devastating economy, war, or famine, when we can seek refuge in the fantastical worlds of Twilight or True Blood. Let us pretend that Edward Cullen is real, and Bill Compton will one day utter our names as lasciviously as he says 'Sookie'.

Jewelry designer Jules Smith has jumped on the Vampire bandwagon with her latest collection: The New Moon Collection. Inspired by, you guessed it, the Twilight series, the pieces are fun and sexy. Who wouldn't want a set of fangs like that?