I’m Not Here — I was incredibly dissapointed when Casey announced that this film was not actually a documentary before I had been able to see it.  In my mind, I thought it had already ruined it.  Now that I’ve seen it, I think it made it better.  The most interesting parts of this movie were not found in the voyeuristic self-destruction of a person (as it would have been if I believed it were real) but instead in the act of the spotlight being turned on the media and the consumers of “celebrity culture.”  The character of Joaquin Phoenix seems equally interesting as it’s impossible to try and figure out where he and his character overlap.  Is P Diddy real?  If not, give him an oscar because this is the best acting the “rapper” has ever done.  Other things worth noting: Ben Stiller being actually funny (briefly) and the way that people standing near Phoenix can’t help but get into his musical performances.  9/10

The Town — I should have just re-watched Heat.  I do think that Ben Affleck is a better director than I want him to be — but seriously, where did he find this terrible script?  It lost 6 of my 10 points in the last 5 minutes of the film.  Honestly one of the worst endings I’ve ever experienced.  Watch the movie until it starts to get corny and then turn it off before you smash your TV.  4/10

“Daggering” is slang for dance moves simulating sexual intercourse, some of which include excitable gymnast-like moves, writes Donna Hope Marquis, a lecturer in reggae studies at the University of the West Indies, Mona, in Kingston Jamaica, in an e-mail to NEWSWEEK. [...]

Jamaican doctors assert that those trying to replicate the powerful moves of daggering in the bedroom can end up with dramatic injuries: they say the incidents of broken penises have increased in the past year; according to an article in the Jamaican Star, some clinics are seeing two a month. [...]

Full Article at NEWSWEEK.com

Wonder Years Troubadour from Evan Romoff on Vimeo.

“Insight has launched an impressive art installation series entitled Dopamine, from setting up underwater art installations with surf actions shots in Bali and having re-created famous skate spots in the middle of the Balinese jungle.

The surf installation was inspired by Beatnick;, Steve Gorrow embarked on a journey beneath the sea to explore the depths of the mind and creativity. Along with the help of his brother, Steve shipped out to Bali to take on the massive feat of building above and beneath the sea to give birth to the latest Insight surf spectacle, and that is Dopamine. Not one to cut corners on creativity, Steve combined upside down bedrooms, naked girls on motor bikes and underwater shanty towns with the amazing skill of the Insight surf team (surfnics) and the photographic talents of Dustin Humphrey to create an array of split double world madness. Welcome to Insight’s latest surf campaign featuring surfers Kai Otton, Luke Stedman, Warren Smith, Jared Mell, Made Lana,Jason Apparicio & The Jamaican Surf Team.”

Via Nerdcore (via dudecraft)

Give it 2 minutes to get going and prepare for the last half to absolutely bitch-slap you.

May 8th – Cursive – First Avenue

Yes, it’s true – Japan’s new Ambassadors of Cute are mainly here to raise Japans profile and combat the threat of China.

These 3 ladies represent an effort to get the world to notice and love Japanese culture. By embracing Kawaii, or cute culture, we then will help Japan gain power in a world which is being increasingly dominated by their neighbors, China.

Shizuka Fujioka dresses as a schoolgirl, Misako Aoki, a Victorian doll in voluminous frilly skirts and Yu Kimura is a singer dressed in a polka dot shirt with a bunny print, offset by bouffant back-combed hair. Her look has made her “a fashion leader in Tokyo teens’ favorite haunt, Harajuku.”

Read the Article at YesButNoButYes and then Kill Yourself.  (Via KFB)

“We are facing an unprecedented economic crisis. The ruling parties should make their utmost efforts to help (the nation) ride out this difficulty,” Aso told top officials from his ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, the New Komeito Party.

Aso’s order for the new stimulus package cheered investors, boosting the benchmark Nikkei 225 index by 371.03 points, or 5.2 percent, to close at 7,569.28.

It comes a day after the government said Japan’s economy shrank at a 12.1 percent annual rate in the October-December quarter, slightly better than the initial estimate of a 12.7 percent contraction, but still its sharpest contraction in 35 years.

AP Article on Japan Working on $900+ Billion Stiumulus Package

In two new studies, researchers who study consumer behavior argue that interrupting an experience, whether dreary or pleasant, can make it significantly more intense.

“The punch line is that commercials make TV programs more enjoyable to watch. Even bad commercials,” said Leif Nelson, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of California, San Diego, and a co-author of the new research. “When I tell people this, they just kind of stare at me, in disbelief. The findings are simultaneously implausible and empirically coherent.” [...]

The new consumer research analyzed similar dynamics at a moment-to-moment level. In one experiment, Dr. Nelson, along with Tom Meyvis and Jeff Galak of New York University, had 87 undergraduates watch an episode of the sitcom “Taxi.” Half watched it as it was originally broadcast, with commercials for the Jewelry Factory Store and the law office of Michael Brownstein, among other ads. The other half watched the show straight through, without commercials.

After the show was over, the students rated how much they enjoyed it, using an 11-point scale and comparing it with the sitcom “Happy Days,” which they were all familiar with.. Those who saw “Taxi” without commercials preferred “Happy Days”, but those who saw the original show, Jewelry Factory Store and all, preferred “Taxi” by a significant margin.

Seriously — It’s worth reading the Full Article at The New York Times