2006-11-16 - 9:01 a.m. I see my fair share of films, both dumb and great, and I usually let the bad ones go w/o much comment. Sometimes, though, a movie's badness is particularly stinging either because its premise is so good, or the director's previous stuff was great, or for whatever reasons my expectations were too high...and all three of these conditions apply to Art School Confidential, which is just a stinkeroo on every level. I had loved Ghost World, and was all over the idea of a comedy/mystery set in art school--how often do you see that? It could have been original and illuminating, but ASC is just clunky, badly acted, poorly plotted, riddled with college-movie cliches, and, worst of all, has keening contempt for every one of its characters, except for the protagonist who practically wears a halo throughout. However, something I do like: the newly reissued Sinoia Caves album, which is yet more analog synth prettiness, albeit recorded in 2002, not 1975. However, you'd never know it wasn't recorded in 1975, judging by the album cover of frolicking hippie children and song titles: "Dwarf Reaching the Arch Wonder," "Sundown in the New Arcades (Milky Way Echo)," etc. thoughts? (11 comments so far) previous - next blog archive contact