Uncategorized

I always look forward to a new release by the great grooving Jamaican keyboarist Monty Alexander, but Rocksteady, due out on March 23, is even more exciting than usual, for on it Alexander is paired with Jamaica’s greatest guitarist, Ernest Ranglin, on jazzy versions of some of the “rocksteady” era’s …

As I have been arguing all along, the trade/”outsourcing” debate can never be about “pure” economics, because this is the real world, and in the real world economics is inextricably bound with politics, as Thomas Friedman notes in yesterday’s column: BANGALORE, India ….Watching these incredibly enthusiastic young Indians preparing for …

Okay, back to Mel: the NY Times remains consistent in its disapproval of The Passion. Conservative commentator William Safire sees the fim as inflaming anti-Semitism: The word “passion” is rooted in the Latin for “suffer.” Mel Gibson’s movie about the torture and agony of the final hours of Jesus is …

As enticing as are the Oscars and theological debate driven by a religious splatter film, back in the real world something extremely significant and encouraging for the future of the greater Middle East transpired today: Iraqi politicians agreed early Monday on an interim constitution with a wide ranging bill of …

The Hollywood Reporter was lurking around backstage – first the Ringers: “All I’m feeling right now is absolute disbelief,” Jackson said. “You hope that you will win something, but the sweep is unreal. It speaks to the fact that people enjoyed the movies that we made on all levels, and …

It was fashionable: Best Actress nominee CHARLIZE THERON was head-to-toe sparkle in her nude, crystal, GUCCI gown with a daring low back, and her natural makeup and hair that said 1930s femme fatale! And Oscar winner and presenter JULIA ROBERTS also went for the pale look and was soft and …

After downplaying the glam – and isn’t that really what the show’s all about? – for the last two years due to 9/11 and then the war in Iraq, the Academy Awards promise to be in full glitz mode this year: Celebrities will be strutting the red carpet again after …

I like Crystal as host: he is quick on his feet, is enough of an insider to be “of” the industry, but as a comedian is enough of an outsider to not pull his punches: When he hosts the Oscars for the eighth time, he’ll serve as master of ceremonies, …

The final awards leading up to tonight’s Oscars were the Independent Spirit Awards, for, um, independent movies. They were announced yesterday in a tent on Santa Monica beach – sounds windy and indie: Best Feature Lost in Translation (Focus Features) Producers: Sofia Coppola and Ross Katz Best Director Sofia Coppola …

I told you the NY Times is not digging Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. Today they have a Catholic writer, Mary Gordon, voicing her displeasure with the movie: I can look at “The Passion of the Christ” only as a woman who defines herself as Catholic, who also …