Had the craziest, coolest dream. Floating through one of my dream cities working with “design agencies” who were insanely artistic. Making film posters, music albums, some of them painting. I think they were making “local movies” that would be released just in the city, like say ad campaigns would be.

Basically fits exactly what I think creative agencies should be in spirit, in real life.

They were also talking a lot and very excited about “the future of animated GIFs,” which I was trying to talk them out of, hilariously – though, from what I remember they were making very cool animated GIFs, so it was difficult.

Revisiting Gene Hackman’s filmography. Was confident I’d have seen every great performance. Nope! Somehow found two that had escaped my attention:

I Never Sang for My Father (1970)
Fits into the same mould as On Golden Pond, concerned with ageing, losing basic competences, and losing parents. And not only is Hackman’s performance great (and atypical for him), the co-lead performance from Melvyn Douglas, who plays his father, is right up there with him.

Night Moves (1975)
Almost a bookmark for the tail end of New Hollywood, which Arthur Penn also started with Bonnie and Clyde. And maybe the most perfectly cast role I’ve seen Hackman play, next to Unforgiven. Superb “examination of American society” drama akin to Nashville in spirit, but in the form of a tense neonoir thriller.

Ordered myself a beautiful steelbook Megalopolis, Italian edition.

I've found this a few times now: for arthouse directors like Lynch, or Copolla going gonzo here, France or Italy often get the best Blu-ray releases.

There might be special editions coming out in English markets, but in any case I preferred Italy’s alternative cover.

Biggest thing of note buying international releases: no English subtitles.

Nails it. “Protects but does not bind.”

Trump, Musk & and co. are peddling a false version of free speech. It’s more like they want to be free of slander while being free to slander. Free to impose speech in the form of orders onto others, and have them unconditionally obeyed. Free to ignore and silence all opposing voices. Free to punish those who don't follow their words, or clap at their speeches.

Damn. Netflix officially cancelled Ezra Edelman's Prince documentary.

I'm a Prince fan, but I have no time for puff pieces. This one sounded excellent, and amazingly expansive in scope, from the NY Times write-up a year or so back (Netflix has been sitting on it for years, trying to reach agreement with Prince’s estate). It’s hard to believe Edelman made an unfair or slanderous hit-piece. Much more likely he was being a Good Fucking Documentarian. And likely, the estate is thinking about one thing: protecting its financial interests, since they have a metric shitload of material from Prince’s vault they can release long into the future. The idea of the “replacement documentary” Netflix is going to release instead—which the estate will be producing themselves? Urgh. No fan of Prince's music doesn't know the man had rough edges and flaws. They can take it.