ELECTION (To, 2005)

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(Directed by Johnnie To from a script by Yau Nai-hoi and Yip Tin-shing; starring Simon Yam, Tony Leung Ka-fai, Louis Koo, and Nick Cheung. Released 20 October 2005; watched 2023w09 via Criterion Channel)

Took awhile for me to find ELECTION's narrative rhythm but once I did, it had me. Phenomenal performances all around, especially Yam as Lok and Leung as Big D. While proclaimed as Hong Kong's answer to THE GODFATHER (and there are similarities, certainly – Big D is nothing if not a hybrid of Sonny Corleone, The Joker, and 45 after the 2020 election, while Lok relishes in the post-ascension Michael role – even getting his own baptism sequence, though far more willing to get his own hands dirty), I never quite felt the suffocating binds of the familial, mythological or real - but it's unfair to compare the two: ELECTION stands on its own and should be judged on its own merits, of which there are legion. Queuing up the sequel for later this week or early next.

crown jewel, part two

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The second of the crown jewels (read: who needs both kidneys, I mean come on) of my Dick Tracy collection (the first being the first Big Little Book ever) to arrive in as many weeks, this 1930s Dick Tracy ventriloquist doll (left), is in his place of honor:

At left, my new, 1930s Dick Tracy ventriloquist doll takes his place of honor among the other Tracy bits and bobs, comics, and dolls and BLBs and etc etc.

While I've yet to find an exact date, I know that he was made in the early ‘30s out of composition (the precursor to plastic) and is, potentially, the first Dick Tracy toy ever released. His mouth moves, with string and pull still attached and, if his coat has been repainted, whoever did it did an incredibly good job: chip reveals no other paint beneath. Display case inbound: he's come a long way to find his forever home and I’m going to make it a good one.

HELLER TAG – Conic Rose

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a pink flower blooms amidst a background of lava-like paint

When I ran away from Berklee, my intention was to compose and create music that merged Radiohead and jazz with my classical training; instead, I ended up working in (and getting fired from) wine shops and becoming a writer. Worked out for the best, because Conic Rose have made a more beautiful cocktail out of those ingredients than I ever could conceive: a new favorite – thanks, Michael, for turning me on to them (BTW, his 8Sided Blog is essential brainfood).