I find it interesting that when actual rock stars of the 70s (i.e. Foreigner, the Doobie Brothers, Blue Oyster Cult and just about anybody else participating in 93.7 FM’s Arrowfest on Sunday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion) get together to relive the halcyon days, the younger generations write it off as “Geezer-fest.” But when a bunch of good-looking Australian kids like Wolfmother grow their hair out, strap on arena rock guitars and belt out recreations of the music they loved (i.e Foreigner, the Doobie Brothers, etc.)… that’s a rock and roll revolution!
(sigh) The beauty of rock n’ roll is what’s old always become new again… eventually.
Regardless of how it evolved, Wolfmother is back and its new album, “Cosmic Egg” works the power chord, extended jam and shriek for all its 70s glory. The band has a new and expanded line-up that allows singer/guitarist Andrew Stockdale do what he does best: scream like a banshee until all are screaming along with him.
First single, “Back Round,” stamps Stockdale as the next great rock falsetto, following in the footsteps of Robert Plant and Chris Cornell.
“New Moon Rising,” the latest radio track, is a string anthem that demonstrates what new rhythm guitarist Aidan Nemeth adds to the band and will make live music junkies pine for Wolfmother to get back out on the road.
After rumors that Wolfmother might be breaking up swirled last year, it appears the band is back on the track that earned it international acclaim and a Grammy award three years ago.
As recently as the late 2010s, if a movie was made about an LGBTQ+ character, it was more than likely about their coming out experience. Romance, if it existed, was typically chaste, and actual sex was almost completely out of the question. Things have changed dramatically in the 2020s, to the point that a major movie star has no issue starring in a film called Queer.
Based on the 1985 novella by William S. Burroughs, the film features William Lee (Daniel Craig), whom everyone calls just Lee, a writer living in 1950s-era Mexico City who spends most of his time haunting local bars with friends like fellow writer Joe Guidry (Jason Schwartzman) and hitting on younger men. His early interactions in the film seem to indicate that Lee has a bad reputation within the local gay community, as multiple people avoid him or give him odd looks.
Lee senses an opportunity when he encounters a newcomer, Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey). Despite some awkward interactions, the two of them start spending time together, although Lee has much more invested in the relationship than Eugene does. Their hit-and-miss bond continues until Lee, who’s starting to get into drugs in addition to the booze, convinces Eugene to accompany him on a trip to South America.
Directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by Justin Kuritzkes (making their second straight film together after Challengers), early on the film seems to be mostly about the divide between an older person who’s grown comfortable in his ways and a younger person who’s living a relatively carefree life. The introduction of drugs into the plot changes things, though, with Lee searching out more ways to open his eyes to what the world has to offer.
Guadagnino and his team use some interesting visual storytelling techniques to introduce ideas that may not be present in the actual script. The most successful, demonstrated in multiple scenes, is the superimposition of movements by Lee over what’s actually taking place in the scene. The subtle overlay gives the audience insight into Lee’s true feelings, showing what he can’t or won’t say out loud.
Music also plays a big part in how the plot is perceived, with the use of anachronistic songs from Nirvana and Prince serving to heighten certain moments. The score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is not as in-your-face as the one they did for Challengers, but it complements the film well, especially when the plot starts to get trippy in its final half hour.
Craig, who appears sweaty and disheveled for much of the film, is about as far from the suaveness of James Bond as you can get in this role. He takes multiple risks with his performance and almost all of them pay off. Starkey’s character is subdued by comparison, but still comes off well. Schwartzman and Lesley Manville are given showy roles, with both using altered appearances that make them nearly unrecognizable to deliver memorable performances.
Queer is not as accessible as Challengers was storytelling-wise, but the fact that it tells a story about gay men living their lives as they see fit with no interference or questions shows how far the film world has come in a short period of time. It also continues Guadagnino’s streak of making audacious films in a way that few other filmmakers are willing or able to approach.
