some reviews I wrote.

Note: The magazine gave me a flexible word limit, but said don't make them too long. So I tried not to.

Also note: Having an intense dislike of deadlines, these were written in about half an hour each so as to make up for the many weeks I should have used to make something worth reading. Although I still think they're pretty good. I also may rewrite the second review and see if I can hand in an edited version.

I critiqued Valkyrie as well, but I'm not so fond of the job I did. It's a shame they're going to publish that one as well. Oh well. Enjoy.

Death Cab for Cutie at Fremantle Arts Centre – 19th of February

This year is shaping up to be a great year for live music in Perth, and for a lot of people, 2009 started on the 19th of February, as the sun started setting over the grounds outside of the Fremantle Arts Centre. Death Cab for Cutie returned to play another show after their sold-out show last August at Metropolis Fremantle, and while I can’t compare the two shows, I can honestly say that I can’t imagine a show ever being better than the one I saw.

The Employment Pages was the first song, and from the first notes from the guitars, and the first words out of Ben Gibbard’s mouth, it was obvious that this was going to be an amazing show. The vocals sounded better than on any of their albums; Ben had all the pitch and clarity you’d want, but with that added presence you can only get when it’s a live show. And this effect wasn’t limited to the vocals – never in my life have I been so awed by a drummer and a bassist than I was at this show. If there is anyone who believes that you can’t emote through a drum kit, Jason McGerr’s performance, particularly at the apex of Transatlanticism will open your mind to a whole new level of intensity. If anyone feels that bass is an instrument to be played in the background, you’ve obviously never seen Nick Harmer live. And of course, the guitar work from Chris Walla was spectacular, as we all knew it would be.

From the upbeat introspection of The Sound of Settling, the anthemic sincerity of Marching Bands of Manhattan, and the intimacy of I Will Follow You Into The Dark, to the solemnity and power of Transatlanticism, Death Cab really showed that their live performance gives everything they have to the audience, leaving nothing backstage. When (not if) they return to our shores in the future, this is a show that any fan, not just of the band, but of live music in general, needs to witness.

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The Spirit

In a time when most of the superheroes we grew up with have been forced out of retirement and onto the big screen, it seems as if most of them either lost something essential, like Spiderman did somewhere in the third film, or gained something immeasurable like Batman did in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. This is why, when writer/director Frank Miller (Sin City) brought a relatively obscure crime-fighter from a comic strip that first appeared in the 1930’s, he was able to give The Spirit a new mainstream persona, rather than trying to mould an already well-known character to fit a bigger screen.

Gabriel Macht stars as Denny Colt, a detective brought back from the dead to fight crime in Central City under the moniker of The Spirit. The city is his great love, so when his arch nemesis, The Octopus (Samuel L. Jackson), threatens it once again he is forced into a final showdown with the villain. While Jackson has made some bad decisions lately regarding the movies he stars in (Snakes on a Plane), this film is so bizarre that it gives an actor like him the room he needs to give a memorable performance. While most superhero films try to hold onto a veneer of reality, The Spirit totally bends reality and cinematic convention to the point where it’s almost funny when people get stabbed. The cinematography is dark and highly stylised to give the film the feel of reading a comic strip; an effect that would not pay off for many other films, but definitely works here. There is more than one scene when the audience will be sure they have not seen anything else even vaguely similar. Whether they will enjoy it is another story.

Like any film, your opinion of The Spirit will be different from other people’s. However, as your humble critic, I feel I should say that if you’re looking for a film to see, this one should definitely find it’s way into the argument you have with your friends about which one it should be. I’m glad I won the argument over my friends and got to see this one, and at the very least, you’ll see a movie unlike anything you’re likely to see in a very long time.