The Todd Haynes Bob Dylan biopic I’m Not There has gotten so much press for so long we kept forgetting it wasn't actually released until today! The high-concept Oscar contender, for those who haven’t heard a million times already, features six different actors portraying a Dylan-type character at different stages of his career. It opens today at select theaters but film buffs have been cultivating opinions about the polarizing film since it first screened... more ›

The holiday-time movie releases are starting to pile up with their usual feverish frequency. Some have Christmas themes, like the widely reviled Vince Vaughn vehicle Fred Claus that’s already roadkill on the lost highway of cinema history; others, like Ridley Scott’s American Gangster, are timed to make an impression as close to Academy Award-voting season as possible. Here are some of the biggest gorillas set to dominate New York’s screens in the next six... more ›

Last night we sent photographer Raymond Haddad to the I'm Not There concert at Beacon Theater. Calexico, The Roots, My Morning Jacket, J Mascis, Yo La Tengo, Mason Jennings, Joe Henry, Mark Lanegan, Lee Ranaldo & the Million Dollar Bashers and many more were on hand to celebrate the soundtrack, the film and of course Bob Dylan himself (who, in fact, was not there). The soundtrack is a double-discer that's been getting praise from... more ›

BAM Cinématek more ›

We've made it through 10 days of this year's New York Film Festival, and it's been a great run so far. As usual, the selection committee has picked stellar films and we've sat in on some star-studded Q&A sessions at Lincoln Center. Here are a few thoughts at the midpoint. more ›

Ira Glass is the brains, heart and larynx behind the wildly popular program This American Life; each show employs a theatrical, multiple-act structure to carve strange slices of life out of a unique thematic pie. The show began almost 12 years ago as a Chicago public radio program but has since mutated into an Emmy-nominated TV series on Showtime – a leap that prompted Glass and his team to relocate to New York City, bringing the radio version in tow. But Glass still keeps one foot in Chicago; he’s compiled a new book whose proceeds benefit 826CHI, the free writing program open to all students in Chicago. He’ll be appearing at Town Hall Monday night with Susan Orlean, Malcolm Gladwell and Chuck Klosterman, who have each contributed to the book, called The New Kings of Nonfiction. (Tickets cost $30; all proceeds benefit 826CHI.) more ›

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FILM: A tribute to Jean Genet on film begins tonight at BAM. The focus will be on films inspired by the French writer, as well as Genet's own Un Chant D'Amour. BAM describes the festival further: more ›

This wouldn't, of course, be the first time that a woman has played a man, or vice versa. The Australian actress and the Duluth musician don't have that much physically in common, but that's no matter. There will also be a lot of other actors playing Dylan. more ›

Some people watch the Super Bowl for the game, some people watch it because they know there will be Buffalo wings at the gathering, and some people watch it for the ads. You can thank Ridley Scott, Chiat/Day and Apple for making Super Bowl Commercial Analysis as big as Monday Morning Quarterbacking. There are many places where you can watch last night's ads - Google Video, USA Today, AdAge, the NY Times - but Gothamist wants to talk about our favorites. We'd have to say the Burger King Whopperettes were awesome during the last 20 seconds, but the build-up was pretty annoying; BK bonus: the website lets you build your own burger. And because we things about stupid humans, Gothamist is a fan of the Bud Light's Magic Frdge spot. We would have hoped the Mastercard spot with MacGyver could have had Selma and Patty in it (the Simpsons did the MasterCard spot last year) and we think the FedEx spot was kind of goofy. The ESPN Mobile spot's usage of Chad and Jeremy's A Summer Song was cute, but it only made us want to see Rushmore again - or listen to the soundtrack. The Diet Pepsi ads were also dumb, but for a maybe fun NYC fact, we think the P.Diddy one was shot at the Power Station (it looked like it anyway...and sorry, Jay Mohr, your big news will be your engagement to Nikki Cox, not these ads). And who knew it was a Nassau Country Girl Scout Chorus that sang "True Colors" for the Dove ad? more ›

Carrie McLaren,
Editor, Stay Free! more ›

Not quite the same, but along similar lines: Illegal Art, where you can find illegal DVD-R's of Superstar, Todd Haynes's movie about Karen Carpenter. Meccapixel has some monkey photos (marmoset, colobus) and Gothamist likes us some monkeys.
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There are certain quirky and intriguing people in the media, whose awe-inspiring creative output makes them just the sort of people whom you'd love to be accidentally sitting next to in a coffeehouse, just so you could evesdrop on their conversation. Or better yet, hear them present on their most recent works in an auditorium for a nominal fee. more ›

Actually, Gothamist likes Weinstein's tubthumping and outreach ideas. Anyone who can make Todd Haynes and M. Night Shymalan cry must be talented. more ›

You can see some of Forsythe's Barbie art here. Of course, the most imaginative recent use of Barbie has been in a "safe for work" version of the Paris Hilton sex tape – that is, if naked Barbies are safe for work – from Millionaire Playboy. more ›

If the Oscars do go on tonight, I'll be glad because then everyone can shut up about it. It may seem strange for me to say this, given my love for movies and the Oscars and how I generally live for movies and love the day the Oscar nominations come out...but there's no Best Picture film I'm really behind this year...the only category I'm interested in Original Screenplay, and it's highly doubtful Almodovar or the Cuaron brothers will win. And after the litany of prizes and awards shows so far, I could care less about the acting categories and wondering if this is Harvey Weinstein's year. Just shut up already. more ›