fcc Tagged Articles at Cinematical

As usual, I'm not going to pretend to understand the technologies behind modern home entertainment. And so, before I begin, I'd like to prematurely thank any commenters who choose to weigh in on things such as "selectable output control," "the analog hole" or any other terms I might misuse or incorrectly explain. The only thing I comprehend about those electronic doohickeys in my living room is that they each somehow connect to my antiquated analog television and through the magic of, well, I don't know, I'm able to watch the occasional classic movie and mindless cake design program.

Those familiar with this column should know that I'm not here to necessarily explain how threats to movie theaters work. I'm just here to yell, "the sky is falling!" from within the lobby of the local cinema and hope that you Henny Pennys and Goosey Looseys are listening to my rants and ramblings and at least try to go to the movies more often (and hopefully buy at least one thing at the concession stand). This time, however, I feel even less knowledgeable about the latest threat, and I feel even more fearful that this is the beginning of the end. The cinemapocalypse, if you will.

The documentary Pirate Radio USA is an enjoyable if somewhat strident look at the world of pirate radio, in which do-it-yourself radio afficianados build their own (illegal) mini-stations and broadcast at ultra-low frequencies (called microcasting). The film strives to use pirate radio's legal difficulties to paint a larger picture about the disintegration of American rights and the influence of mainstream media and large corporations.

Pirate Radio USA is an unabashadly personal and partisan film --the filmmakers aren't afraid to appear on-camera to tell you what they think. Director and longtime radio pirate Jeff Pearson periodically narrates the film with help from Mary Jones on a stylized set that is actually a working pirate radio station, in their on-air personas of DJ Him and DJ Her. (The station set does not get raided by the FCC, which is fortunate but would have made the film even more interesting.) Pearson is engaging and amusing even when he gets a bit ranty about the FCC. He's got that Morgan Spurlock-style narration down pat.

The budget of Pirate Radio USA must not have been much bigger than that of one of the radio communities it profiles -- for example, cities are portrayed by crude yet cute plastic models. The Seattle model involves a big Starbucks coffee mug, of course. The models fit in nicely with the overall retro look and feel of the movie -- the filmmakers often use older stock footage in the public domain to illustrate their points, especially when discussing the history of low-frequency radio. (At Austin Film Festival, the documentary screened in the tiny theater at The Hideout, an independently owned coffeeshop, which provided the perfect setting.)

Odds and ends for Monday:

• Catherine Keener and Ellen Page (Hard Candy) have signed on to star in Tommy O'Haver's thriller, The Basement. Pic, which is based on the actual court transcripts of a real event, tells the story of a seemingly normal housewife (Keener) who decides to take one of her seven kids and imprison her in the basement. Set in the 1960s, the events that followed not only shocked the nation, but also probably contributed to the fact that most of us are terrified of what's downstairs.
• After originally penning the screenplay, then stepping off the director's chair, Chris Weitz (About a Boy, American Pie) has jumped back on to helm The Golden Compass. Based on Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, pic will mark the first installment in what will be New Line's most expensive since The Lord of the Rings films. Weitz replaces Anand Tucker, who left the project due to "creative differences," and production will begin this November to be released sometime in 2007.
• After all these years, the FCC is finally giving Martin Scorcese sh*t over his use of foul language in the TV mini-series The Blues. The director, who is fond of cussing in such films as Goodfellas and, well, a bunch more, fired back at FCC officials who claimed the language featured was unnecessary. Scorcese claimed the language was "essential" and defined an era in which blues musicians used their foul mouths as a way to stand up to a society dominated by whites in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. Yeah, now the F-bomb is used by teenagers as a way to make their parents feel guilty for not buying them a brand new BMW. My, how far we've come.