Wednesday, June 18th, 2003
Laurel Canyon
Lisa Cholodenko’s Laurel Canyon is about a straight-laced couple (Christian Bale and Kate Beckinsale) who move to California to temporarily stay with Bale’s successful and eccentric record producer mother (Frances McDormand). The two are slowly absorbed into McDormand’s bohemian lifestyle – Beckinsale willingly, Bale not so much – with predictable results.
A reasonably enjoyable movie, mostly for McDormand’s performance, with some pretty cool scenes/reference points. Choice among them: The band McDormand is recording (which sounds like Chris Martin from Coldplay fronting the Folk Implosion – mostly because if IS some British mook with Lou Barlow and Russ Pollard as his backing band) playing Sparklehorse’s “Someday I Will Treat You Good”. Kate Beckinsale doing a striptease to Serge Gainsbourg’s “Bonnie & Clyde”. Mark Linkous and Daniel Lanois playing guitar together at a CD wrap party. Kate Beckinsale frolicking in a pool in her underwear. A really impressive soundtrack featuring Mercury Rev, Sparklehorse (Linkous was all over this film), Baxter Drury and Anna Waronker, among others. And Kate Beckinsale. Oh sorry, did I already mention her?
No Responses.
![[Valid RSS]](http://www.chromewaves.net/images/interface/valid-rss.png "Validate my RSS feed"){kind=small}