John Reith‘s original mantra for the BBC was to ‘educate, inform, entertain’. With Robinson in Ruins, the third film in the Robinson trilogy, Patrick Keiller succeeds in achieving two of these objectives. Following on where the two previous pieces in the trilogy, London and Robinson in Space, left off, Robinson in Ruins documents the faceless Robinson’s journeys through Berkshire and Oxfordshire after the discovery of his films in an abandoned caravan. Narrated by Vanessa Redgrave as the wife of a fellow researcher, a historical picture is painted of the milieu as she speaks over the various landscapes the still camera captures. Steeped in Marxist ideology, how capitalism has shaped Britain is told through anecdotes around each shot. And what is done here is clever, a shot of a spider forming its web while discussing the collapse of the housing market serving as an example. However, while Robinson in Ruins gives an interesting history lesson, close to two hours of endless streams of information feels more like an arduous lecture than entertainment. Redgrave throws more knowledge our way than we care to remember, and the intonation within her words fails to draw you in. At times, the extended shots of farmers at work – arguably some of the most entertaining shots – lack purpose and only serve to add to a film that is over-long, over-informative and could be cut into a series of more digestible shorts. Indeed, films need to be intellectual to some extent and work to stimulate our minds, but in lacking entertainment serve as little more than a two hour lecture in human geography.
1979 - RJD2 Mum's the Word - Lewis Parker Torture Chamber (Cut Chemist Remix) - Edan and Percee P Silver Children - Force of Nature Love Someone (Live) - Dub FX Breezin' - Tsutchie Headz Still aIn't Ready - DJ Vadim Real - DJ Krush and Tragedy To Be Continued - DJ Krush Adrenaline Rush (Instrumental) - Edan Dope Rhythms for Sure - Edan Unexplained Phenomena - Insight and Edan You Made Me - Prince Paul In Your Mind - Prince Paul 81 Summer - Uyama Hiroto Goodmorning Sunshine - Quasimoto Astro Travellin - Quasimoto Blitz - Quasimoto Microphone Mathematics - Quasimoto Bad Character - Quasimoto Rock and Roll - Edan and Dagha
Being a fan of hip hop and all things Japanese, when a few years ago I heard that there was a ‘hip hop anime’, I was of course interested. But hip hop is a very loose term these days and most that describes itself as such often isn’t, and so I was a little sceptical as to what I might end up viewing.
On purchasing the first Samurai Champloo DVD, I was instantly surprised to hear something that I recognised from an old Prime Cuts mix from one of his first Friday of the month sets on the Tim Westwood show playing over the DVD menu screen. It turned out to be ‘Loading Zone by Force of Nature, one of the soundtrack contributors, but on pressing ‘Play’ the real star of the show became apparent.
With the music – in the most part, hip hop as I want it – I researched the soundtrack further, as well as the names Nujabes, Fat Jon, Force of Nature and Tsutchie, relative unknowns anywhere. With this the case, it proved difficult to find the soundtrack available anywhere in the UK, or indeed the US. And as such, I had to look to YouTube and strapping my headphones down at work in order to listen to the tracks from Samurai Champloo.
From this, I would click on further tracks by Nujabes, quickly realising it made up the majority of what I listened to, online anyway. On my trip to the Land of the Rising Sun, I, therefore, made my way to a record shop to purchase both the 4 Samurai Champloo soundtracks and all available works by the late Shibuya record shop owner.
Luckily relatively easy to locate, they formed the soundtrack of my trip across Honshu, and indeed my life for the next 2 years. Though none of it was really new to me, having spent many a work hour with it on YouTube, I couldn’t stop listening to the music of Nujabes. Not the best music I’d ever heard, but at a consistently high level, at a time when everyone else seems confused as to what music they want to make. Seba Jun-san was something different at a stagnant time for music.
So learning of his death in February of this year clearly saddened me. Not just for the loss of his music, but the lack of knowledge as to the man and his work. I only learnt of his passing from an updated title on a YouTube video stating ‘RIP’ a month later.
However, this had led to numerous comments left on YouTube videos, and indeed what seems a large increase in the number of views videos featuring his music receive. In fact, his videos get more views than major label Japanese hip hop DJs DJ Krush and DJ Honda, whose international fame can’t buy them more YouTube following than the enigmatic, self-releasing artist with virtually no self-promotion. He’s almost made Funky DL seem popular, with their 2 collaborations into 6 figures – way more than Funky DL himself could ever hope for.
Yet his is still an unknown name to many beyond anime fans posting AMVs. Not conventional hip hop by a long shot, but still hip hop, and so has gained a small but loyal following on YouTube, with all his tracks up there and all receiving a modestly large number of views.
And so, despite his lack of fame and mainstream success, the name Nujabes has had an influence on the world; be it Westerners posting AMVs, Japanese blokes with digital cameras or people trying to play ‘Aruarian Dance’ on acoustic guitar. Here’s mine...
Tonight I attended an evening discussion at the ICA entitled ‘What is the future of Korean film?’ Featuring a panel of: Asian film expert Tony Rayns; Head of Programming at the Independent Cinema Office, Simon Ward; and Korean director Jang Jin, the evening did not exactly answer the question it posed as to Korean cinema’s future, but did provide some interesting insights into the commercial world of film-making, as well as some cultural differences.
Discussing Korean films chosen for release in the UK, Simon ward – a man who plays a large role in pushing foreign films into the UK market – made the point that any foreign language film in the UK is immediately bracketed under the term ‘art house’, playing alongside experimental, alternative and independent films and documentaries, whatever the nature of the film. So, whether or not a Korean film is an artistically-shot drama, budget gore-fest or big budget action adventure, it will be classed as art house. A distinction many friends often make whenever I let on that I am going to see a film of non-English speaking origin, thus making me a pretentious wanker.
With this being the case, Mr Ward went on to state that UK distributers will, therefore, search overseas for independent films, more experimental films and, often, less commercial films. As if you are going to be classed as art house, you may as well be art house.
And this made sense to me. If you’re going to see a big budget, visual spectacle that requires little thought, why would you want to spend the whole time reading?! You will choose the Hollywood blockbuster over a Korean equivalent – independent of how good each was – due to the greater ease of the experience. If you want to be a little more challenged and see some risks taken on screen, you probably won’t mind taking the time to read some words at the bottom of the picture, or as I do, learn the language.
This answered an internal question that is always with me when I speak to Nihon-jin; that they seem to have little knowledge of the contemporary Nihon no eiga that I so enjoy. If my Nihon-go no sensei was back home in Toyota, I’m sure she’d go and see the latest Japanese blockbuster, not some unknown independent. Do you think that more British people have seen Dead Man’s Shoes than Harry Potter and his Bleeding Anus?! I don’t either...
