Best of winter break: Mariachi queens, Spider-Verse and more
Here are some things across the internet that I found or recently rediscovered that are really freaking cool and interesting.
Music:
“Bohemian Rhapsody” by Mariachi Femenil Innovación Mexicana – The biggest mistake when covering this classic Queen song is trying to exactly recreate it, but this 11 musician female mariachi band perform it into the genre really beautifully. It wasn’t until a bit into the video that I realized it was an all-girl group which is not common in this genre. I still am coming off that great 2018 biopic high and it is beautiful to see the reach of Queen’s music across the globe.
“Dulces Recuerdos” by Flor De Toloache – After finding the previous video, I dove headfirst into all-female mariachi bands and found Flor De Toloache. What I liked about this New-York based ensemble was the fusion of sounds from all across the Americas. As a person with novice Spanish skills, the Spanglish is a plus too. I recommend checking out their NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concert and their song “Long Gone Girl” too.
“All I Really Want for Christmas” by Lil Jon featuring Kool-Aid-Man – There is nothing more Christmassy to a song than joy and selling something. As commercial as this is, it paints a more honest picture of most people’s Christmas Eve/day activities – eating a lot of food and being silly with family/friends.
Movies and television:
“The Real Thing” – This seven-minute film has all the feels. It features a veteran coming home to his family and shows the strength of paternal love. I can’t say more without spoiling it. Once you watch it, there is a short interview with the director, Brandon Kelley, on the original Kickstarter project for the film.
“Shrek Retold” – This might possibly be the best remake ever because it was created for fans by fans. This film could only be possible with the internet as it gathers over 200 artists. This work of art premiered at the 7th annual Shrekfest in Madison Wisconsin Sept. 2, 2018 and then was released by 3GI Studios free on Nov. 29.
“Spider-Man: Enter the Spider-Verse” – This film is going to be looked back as an animation game changer as it pushes the bounds of visual storytelling by not only combining 3D and 2D scenes but using it so that it doesn’t feel quite like a comic book, game or movie. In addition to the beautiful nature of the movie, it is super entertaining and has a kickin’ score. This movie also inspired a trend among artists to create their ‘Spidersona’, Spidey version of themselves and post them on Twitter and Instagram.
“VICE” – This biographical drama/comedy follows Dick Cheney through his political journey from 1969 to around 2013. This movie was made by frequent Will Ferrell collaborator and SNL head writer alumni Adam McKay, which makes it a bit easier to take in some of the more disturbing parts of Cheney’s life, such as his role in expanding torture, wiretapping and falsifying the idea that Iraq had “weapons of mass destruction.”
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” season two – After an award collecting first season, this Amazon comedy came back with its wit and charm. The storytelling format was less tight than season one, but the side plots being more plentiful made for more comedic scenes. The set, costumes and cinematography made it almost viewable muted, but then you would miss the killer period soundtrack and contemporary covers.
Must Reads:
“US proposal for defining gender has no basis in science” [Opinion] – This editorial from Nature Research (under Scientific American) argues that using physical anatomy or genetics to define gender won’t provide the binary results that some lawmakers want.
“Some Japanese-Americans Wrongfully Imprisoned During WWII Oppose Census Question” – This is another angle of the census debate that has been overlooked- the consequences leading to the removal of privacy and civil liberties. I don’t know why this never crossed my mind on “how” the US managed to pull a large amount of Japanese-Americans (and some others) into internment camps so quickly.
Memes:
More Ya Know:
”Harry Potter: What Magic Sounds Like” – This YouTube essay by Nerdwriter1 looks into the unique ways the sound engineers for each film in the Harry Potter series tackled how to make the sound of magic and how “The Prisoner of Azkaban,” much like the plot, changed the course of the series. This is one of those things that you take for granted when you watch a film that just makes you appreciate all the people behind the scenes.
”America From Scratch” – This new-ish channel asks questions like “what if we didn’t have states,” “what if we allowed 12-year-olds to vote,” or “what if we had a mandatory gender quota?” Interestingly enough, these questions don’t come out of nowhere. There is historical and global precedence or it is posed as a radical solution to a big issue. The host talks to experts both for and against it. Even episodes where I start off the video with eyes rolling, I am shocked to find the logic in both responses. Season two of this YouTube series is set to start in 2019.
”Operation Infektion” – This New York Times Op-Ed is about the KGB disinformation campaign of the same name that began in the Cold War. The Russian involvement in the 2016 election may have been the most politicized and public operation, but it is not the first. They talk with former KGB spies, US intelligence experts and the scariest part of this series is how effective the department is. There are so many conspiracy theories embedded in our culture that were manufactured from Russia/USSR.
