Marie writes: I find it has a trippy quasi-Rorschach effect wherein you'll start to see things. It taps directly into your subconscious and reflects back some of what's floating around inside your own psyche. The first "vertical" video is 5 minutes long and rather hypnotic...

In this animated noir, a man's obsession with key lime pie brings him to the brink of insanity and a chance encounter with the grim reaper. Directed by Trevor Jimenez. Made at Sheridan in 2007.

Marie writes: Roger tweeted this viral video and which is how I heard about it. "This is a single-pipe alpine coaster in Mieders, Austria. You reach the summit via a cable-car and then sit on a small car with a brake lever and off you go. Having ridden it once using a little braking, I decided to try it a second time without using the brakes. This is SCARY! Enjoy the ride!" - David Ellis

What's that you say?  It's not scary enough..?  Well...ordinarily I wouldn't show you guys this, as I suspect the Grand Poobah is pretty close to puking already, but since I heard someone ask...smile....

Sometimes our members find wonderful things and submit them to the Ebert Club - as was the case with the following short...

Manhatta (1921) is a short 11-minute documentary film made by painter Charles Sheeler and photographer Paul Strand. The film consists of 65 shots sequenced in a non-narrative structure, providing a view of the city in its formative years. Soundtrack by The Cinematic Orchestra led by composer/programmer/multi-instrumentalist Jason Swinscoe. To learn more, visit the band's Official website and The Cinematic Orchestra over at WIKI. Soundtrack & Film now available from the Ninjashop and iTunes.

Terje Sorgjerd is a famous time-lapse photographer and filmmaker from Oslo, Norway. Members may remember his short film "The Aurora" when it appeared in the Newsletter this past Spring. He also filmed "The Arctic Light"...

"During the month of May, I shot Milky Way time-lapse in central South Dakota, when I had the time, and the weather cooperated. The biggest challenge was cloudy nights and the wind. There were very few nights, when I could shoot, that were perfectly clear, and often the wind was blowing 25mph +. That made it hard to get the shots I wanted. I kept most of the shots low to the ground, so the wind wouldn't catch the setup and cause camera shake, or blow it over. I used a Stage Zero Dolly on the dolly shots and a "Milapse" mount on the panning ones." - uploaded by Dakotalapse. Simon Wilkinson from http://www.thebluemask.com created the soundtrack "Exodus" for the video.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2012) Directed by Stephen Daldry. Starring Thomas Horn, Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock. Synopsis: A nine-year-old amateur inventor, jewelry designer, astrophysicist, tambourine player, and pacifist searches New York for the lock that matches a mysterious. In theaters January 20, 2012

Wish You Were Here (2011) Directed by Kieran Darcy-Smith. Starring Joel Edgerton, Felicity Price and Teresa Palmer. Four friends - husband and wife Dave and Alice, and Alice's sister Steph and her new boyfriend Jeremy - lose themselves in the fun of a carefree South East Asian holiday. However, only three return back to Australia. Dave and Alice come home to their young family desperate for answers about Jeremy's mysterious disappearance. When Steph, returns not long after, a brutal secret is revealed about the night her boyfriend went missing. But it is only the first of many. Who amongst them knows what happened on that fateful night when they were dancing under a full moon in Cambodia? Official selection Sundance 2012

Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2012) Directed by David Gelb. Documentary synopsis: The story of 85 year-old Jiro Ono, considered by many to be the world's greatest sushi chef. He is the proprietor of Sukiyabashi Jiro, a 10-seat, sushi-only restaurant inauspiciously located in a Tokyo subway station. Despite its humble appearances, it is the first restaurant of its kind to be awarded a prestigious 3 star Michelin review, and sushi lovers from around the globe make repeated pilgrimage, calling months in advance and shelling out top dollar for a coveted seat at Jiro's sushi bar.

For most of his life, Jiro has been mastering the art of making sushi, but even at his age he sees himself still striving for perfection, working from sunrise to well beyond sunset to taste every piece of fish; meticulously train his employees; and carefully mold and finesse the impeccable presentation of each sushi creation. At the heart of this story is Jiro's relationship with his eldest son Yoshikazu, the worthy heir to Jiro's legacy, who is unable to live up to his full potential in his father's shadow. JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI is a thoughtful and elegant meditation on work, family, and the art of perfection, chronicling Jiro's life as both an unparalleled success in the culinary world, and a loving yet complicated father. In theaters March 9, 2012

Being Flynn (2012) Directed by Paul Weitz. Starring Robert De Niro, Julianne Moore, Paul Dano. Synopsis: During his twenties, a young man works at various homeless shelters in Boston, where he often intersects with his brilliant but troubled father. Release date TBA spring 2012

John Carter (2012) starring Thomas Haden Church, William DaFoe, Lynn Collins, Taylor Kitsch, Samantha Morton and Dominic West. Official synospis: John Carter is a sweeping action-adventure set on the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars). John Carter is based on a classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, whose highly imaginative adventures served as inspiration for many filmmakers, both past and present. The film tells the story of war-weary, former military captain John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who is inexplicably transported to Mars where he becomes reluctantly embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions amongst the inhabitants of the planet, including Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and the captivating Princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). In a world on the brink of collapse, Carter rediscovers his humanity when he realizes that the survival of Barsoom and its people rests in his hands. In theaters March 9, 2012.

This Means War (2012) Directed by McG. Starring Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine and Tom Hardy. Official synopsis: Two lifelong best friends, dedicated to their lives as CIA spies, wage an epic war against one another after they both fall in love with the same unsuspecting woman, an indecisive product tester forced to make the toughest choice of her life. In theaters February 17, 2012.

Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) Directed by Rupert Sanders. Starring Kristen Stewart, Charlize Theron, Chris Hemsworth, Sam Claflin, Ian McShane. Synopsis: In a twist to the fairy tale, the Huntsman ordered to take Snow White into the woods to be killed winds up becoming her protector and mentor in a quest to vanquish the Evil Queen. In theaters June 1, 2012

Mirror Mirror (2012) Directed by Tarsem Singh. Starring Lily Collins, Julia Roberts, Armie Hammer. Synopsis: An evil queen steals control of a kingdom and an exiled princess enlists the help of seven resourceful rebels to win back her birthright. In theaters March 16, 2012

Rampart (2011) Directed by Oren Moverman. Starring Woody Harrelson, Ben Foster, Sigourney Weaver. Synopsis: Set in early 1990s Los Angeles, veteran police officer Dave Brown, the last of the renegade cops, works to take care of his family, and struggles for his own survival. In theaters January 27, 2012

The Raven (2012) Directed by James McTeigue. Starring John Cusack, Alice Eve, Luke Evans. A fictionalized account of the last days of Edgar Allan Poe's life, in which the poet pursues a serial killer whose murders mirror those in the writer's stories. In theaters March 9, 2012

The Woman in Black (2012) Directed by James Watkins. Based on the novel The Woman in Black by Susan Hill. Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Janet McTeer, Ciarán Hinds. Synopsis: Young lawyer Arthur Kipps travels to a remote village to organize a recently deceased client's papers, where he encounters the ghost of a scorned woman set on vengeance. In theaters February 12, 2012

The Invisible War (2012) Directed by Kirby Dick. Documentary. Synopsis: the Invisible War is a groundbreaking investigative documentary about one of our country's most shameful and best kept secrets: the epidemic of rape within our Us military. Today, a female soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire with the number of assaults in the last decade alone in the hundreds of thousands. Focusing on the powerfully emotional stories of several young women, the film reveals the systemic cover up of the crimes against them and follows their struggles to rebuild their lives and fight for justice. The Invisible War features hard-hitting interviews with high-ranking military officials and members of Congress that reveal the perfect storm conditions that exist for rape in the military, its history of cover-up, and what can be done to bring about much needed change. Schedule to screen at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.

Haywire (2012) Directed by Steven Soderbergh. Starring: Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas, Mathieu Kassovitz and Natascha Berg. Synopsis: Beautiful freelance covert operative Mallory Kane is hired out by her handler to various global entities to perform jobs which governments can't authorize and heads of state would rather not know about. After a mission to rescue a hostage in Barcelona, Mallory is quickly dispatched on another mission to Dublin. When the operation goes awry and Mallory finds she has been double crossed, she needs to use all of her skills, tricks and abilities to escape an international manhunt, make it back to the United States, protect her family, and exact revenge on those that have betrayed her. In theaters January 20, 2012

Albatross (2012) Directed by Niall MacCormick. Starring Sebastian Koch, Julia Ormond and Felicity Jones. Synopsis: Emelia Conan-Doyle is a cheeky force of nature and the 17 year old heir to the legacy of Arthur Conan Doyle. Harboring an ambition to follow in the literary footsteps of her grandfather, Emelia writes while working at a stuffy seaside hotel populated by another blocked novelist Jonathan, his put-upon wife and their daughter Beth. Befriending Beth, Emelia begins to inch her way into their family life before casually seducing the sexually-frustrated Jonathan, forcing all involved to confront some uncomfortable truths about their situation. In theaters January 2, 2012 limited Release

The Avengers (2012) Directed by Joss Whedon. Screenplay: Zak Penn, Joss Whedon. Starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson. Synopsis: The S.H.I.E.L.D. agency brings together a team of superhumans to help save the Earth from annihilation by extraterrestrial invaders. In theaters May 4, 2012

The Cabin in the Woods (2012) Directed by Drew Goddard. Written by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard. Starring Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford and Chris Hemsworth. Synopsis: A group of friends at a cabin retreat scratch the surface of something so massive and horrific that they can only begin to fathom it as time quickly runs out... In theaters April 13, 2012.

Safe (2012) Directed by Boaz Yakin. Starring Jason Statham, Catherine Chan and Chris Sarandon. Synopsis: A former elite agent takes on a two-tier mission: rescue a Chinese girl who's been abducted by the Triads, then use a safe combination to outwit the Russian Mafia, corrupt NYC officials, and the Triads themselves. In theaters April 27, 2012

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengence (2012) Directed by Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor. Starring Nicolas Cage, Ciarán Hinds, Idris Elba. Synopsis: As Johnny Blaze hides out in Eastern Europe, he is called upon to stop the devil, who is trying to take human form.In theaters February 17, 2012

Titanic 3D (2012) Directed by James Cameron. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet and Billy Zane. Unofficial synopsis: An attractive albeit poor young man meets a rich girl during the ill-fated maiden voyage of RMS Titanic, where the subsequent death of thousands adds to the angst and pathos which in turn, makes the romantic stuff even better, according to teenage girls who bought most of the tickets back in 1997. In theaters April 6, 2012

Brave (2012) Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman. Starring Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson. Synopsis: Merida is a skilled archer and impetuous daughter of King Fergus and Queen Elinor. Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin, surly Lord Macintosh and cantankerous Lord Dingwall. Merida's actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and when she turns to an eccentric old Witch for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to undo a beastly curse before it's too late. Release date June 22, 2012

The Hunger Games (2012) Directed by Gary Ross. Based on best-selling novel by Suzanne Collins. Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Wes Bentley, Elizabeth Banks, Dayo Okeniyi, Amandla Stenberg, Jack Quaid, Leven Rambin, Willow Shields, Paula Malcomson, Ian Nelson, Kalia Prescott, Ethan Jamieson, Tara Macken, Chris Mark, Jacqueline Emerson, Ashton Moio, Kara Petersen, Sam Ly, Leigha Hancock, Samuel Tan, Mackenzie Lintz, Imanol Yepez-Frias, Annie Thurman, Stanley Tucci, Woody Harrelson, Latarsha Rose, Brooke Bundy, Lenny Kravitz, Toby Jones, Amber Chaney, Kimiko Gelman, Nelson Ascencio and Donald Sutherland. Synopsis: Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the evil Capitol of the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. A twisted punishment for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic, The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which "Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor remains. In theaters March 23, 2012

Marie writes: "Q" is a Canadian program featuring arts, culture and entertainment as hosted by Jian Ghomeshi who engages top artists, critics and phenoms in conversation. Manchester rock outfit Elbow perform "Lippy Kids" from their Mercury Prize nominated album "Build a Rocket Boys!"  Album review at the Guardian

Note: Q's weekly TV program CBC Television on Sundays at 1pm. Listen to Q on CBC Radio 1: Monday to Friday - 10am and 10pm or catch it on Sirius Satellite Radio, channel 159 at 9am, 3pm and 11pm (EST). Q website at the CBC

Marie writes: I could explain, but it's a long and convoluted tail involving Nero Wolfe and William Shatner. What matters is that Leonard Nimoy is equally beloved on the internet and apparently by gamers....

"On telling the powers that be on the film desk that Withnail and I was my favourite movie, I was informed this was a "typical choice for muso types". I was outraged. Were they suggesting "muso types" were the kind of drug-hungry, unemployable reprobates portrayed in the film? The sort of people who live on little more than raw potato, red wine and lighter fuel?  Oh.....

I have to confess, I first heard about Withnail and I in terms of a drinking game - could you watch the film while matching the two lead characters shot for shot, pint for pint, Camberwell carrot for Camberwell carrot? Yet for all the wanton liver damage caught on celluloid here, Withnail and I is so much more than just a reckless bender. For me, it's a devastating portrayal of that terrifying moment when adulthood finally catches up with you." - by Tim Jonze. To read more, visit My favourite film: Withnail and I at the Guardian

The Screaming Skull (1958) Directed by Alex Nicol. Starring John Hudson, Peggy Webber, Russ Conway.

Synopsis: Newlyweds Eric and Jenni Whitlock retire to his desolate mansion, where Eric's first wife Marianne died from a mysterious freak accident. Jenni, who has a history of mental illness, begins to see strange things including a mysterious skull, which may or may not be a product of her imagination. Suspicion falls on Mickey, the estate's mentally challenged gardener, who was seemingly was very attached to his former mistress. Note:Though it is never credited, the film is based on Francis Marion Crawford's classic horror story of the same title, first published around 1906.

As it turns out, Crawford's inspiration for the tale came from the folklore surrounding the so-called "screaming skull" that was kept on display at Bettiscomb Manor in Dorset, England. The actual skull that inspired both the story and the movie is said to be that of a black slave whose request for burial in his native country was denied following his death and was subsequently followed by strange occurrences and unexplainable shrieking noises that emanated from the wooden box in which the skull was kept. The film score also features the early work of celebrated composer Ernest Gold, who'd later go on to win an Academy Award for the soundtrack to Exodus. This film is in the Public Domain.

The Amazing Adventure aka The Amazing Quest of Ernest Bliss (1936) Directed by Alfred Zeisler. Starring Cary Grant, Mary Brian. Synopsis: Ernest Bliss (Cary Grant) is a rich socialite suffering boredom. He makes a bet with a doctor, Sir James Aldroyd, that he can live a year without relying on any of his inherited wealth. He loses the bet for £50,000 when he has to draw money to wed poverty stricken Frances Clayton (Mary Brian), to save her from an unhappy marriage of convenience. Public Domain film.

The Divorce of Lady X (1938) Directed by Tim Whelan. Starring Merle Oberon, Laurence Olivier, Ralph Richardson and Binnie Barnes.

Synopsis: Leslie Steele, a guest at a costume party is forced to stay overnight in a hotel because of a particularly bad London fog. As there are no rooms available, Steele talks her way into sharing a suite with Everard Logan (Laurence Olivier), a handsome but somewhat stiff lawyer. They spend the night together, quite chastely, but Logan becomes convinced that Leslie must be married. His conviction is confirmed when an old school friend, Lord Mere (Ralph Richardson) arrives and asks Everard to represent him in a divorce case against his wife, Lady Claire (Binnie Barnes). The film is a remake of the 1933 film, Counsel's Opinion, also made by London Films and in which Binnie Barnes appeared in the role played by Merle Oberon. Public Domain.

"W. Somerset Maugham's widely circulated novel, "Of Human Bondage," has come through the operation of being transferred to the screen in an unexpectedly healthy fashion. It may not possess any great dramatic strength, but the very lifelike quality of the story and the marked authenticity of its atmosphere cause the spectators to hang on every word uttered by the interesting group of characters." - by Mordaunt Hall, published June 29, 1934 NY Times


Of Human Bondage (1934) Directed by John Cromwell. Starring Bette Davis, Leslie Howard, Frances Dee. Written by Lester Cohen. Based on the novel by W. Somerset Maugham. Synopsis: Of Human Bondage tells the story of a club-footed, sensitive artist Philip Carey (Leslie Howard), an Englishman who has been studying painting in Paris for four years, but is advised by his art teacher that his work is mediocre and second-rate, and that he lacks promise. So he returns to London, England to take up studies to become a medical doctor, but his older age and introspection make it difficult for him to keep up in his scholastic work. In England, he becomes infatuated and then obsessed by a blonde, lower-class, slatternly and vulgar, Cockney-accented, illiterate tearoom waitress named Mildred Rogers. Public Domain film.