Journeying throughout Los Angeles our contributor and editor Aaron Howell found himself in the midst of making a short film. So in another self-aggrandizing attempt at self-promotion we are posting the film below. The film written and directed by Will Converse-Richter, local Los Angeles film student and general-purpose artist, goes all out in its attempt to paint a dark picture of grief, where bloody reality mixes with the delusional pain of suffering loss. When we say bloody and pain we literally mean blood and pain. Did we mention it was dark? A note of warning, if the film doesn’t disturb you then please contact Los Angeles the Blog immediately and we will put you in touch with our therapist who studies existential psychoanalysis. The word “psycho” is the important one. So without further hoopla we give you 6-minutes of “Irreparable.” Enjoy.
Category Archives: LA
L.A. the Blog: Lemmings CNN? A Metaphor For The U.S.? Really?
While perusing various news sites L.A. the Blog stumbled on a wonderful and irreverent video posted on CNN’s website created by their very own Erin Burnett for the daily news show OutFront. Before we jump into the video we want to quote what CNN writes as a description of the show:
Erin Burnett OutFront airs weeknights at 7 p.m. ET. Designed to showcase Erin’s unique style–casual, smart, and confident–OutFront stays ahead of the headlines, delivering a show that’s in-depth and informative.
While we admit we aren’t an avid watcher of OutFront and can’t comment overall on Ms. Burnett’s “casual, smart, and confident” style, we can sure the hell comment on this video report entitled “Steering Towards a Cliff,” that covers the upcoming need to raise the debt ceiling, and the likely showdown between the GOP House and the Obama White House. Lemmings anyone?
Hell, L.A. the Blog can be just as irreverent – Jesus Christ and the Holy Mother of God did she actually find archival footage of lemmings to put in her video!? Did she actually just compare us all to lemmings!? It could be me but I think she was really trying to say the Bill Clinton and John Boehner look like lemmings. Serious though (if I can be serious at this moment) we give Ms. Burnett the award for funniest video of the month, John Stewart eat your heart out!
The language of doom and overhanging sense of imminent, total destruction by something totally out of our control, something larger than woman and man combined, as she talks about our nation’s fiscal debt reminds us of reading William Faulkner, and his personified, indomitable description of nature when it overwhelms and runs wild. We think her choice of words might be slightly exaggerated and with the lemming video a little over the top. Makes for good fun though!
L.A. the Blog leaves you with our takeaway from the whole experience, for the report isn’t just a video it is an entire experience to be had down the dark path of human lunacy and intimate look into man’s deepest fears. Our takeaway – if you are going to use an analogy, don’t use one that will make the animal rights people angry. All those dead lemmings on TV, poor little things.
L.A. the Blog: Two New Eateries On Hollywood Blvd.
As the machine development wheels forward unconquerable, implacable along the famous stretch of Hollywood Boulevard known as the Walk of Fame, where in golden stars immortalized forever rest the names of iconic people who bestowed years of entertainment upon us – L.A. the Blog is happy to announce two new eateries marking the mythic landscape. They totally make the “cheap eats” list of places to grab a quick bite and both are well worth the visit.
The first place anyone from New York will recognize, and everyone else who watched Spider Man 2 the movie should remember fondly. The silver screen made-famous Joe’s Pizza where Toby McGuire playing Peter Parker worked delivering pizza in the film’s opening scenes – yes! Joe’s Pizza is now gracing Hollywood right at Wilcox and Hollywood Blvd., and yes! Right around the corner of another New York staple Papaya King. We are experiencing a wholesale invasion from the east coast. Next will see Dunkin’ Donuts or something.
Joe’s famous NYC Pizza
As L.A. the Blog is personally very familiar with Joe’s pizza in New York our readers can trust us to safely critique the flavor of this new Joe’s in comparison to the one in NY. Surprisingly the pizza is very similar in taste, almost exactly the same in taste, so we give the place an A+ for its pizza. We will point out the slight differences. Whether it is the high-volume of pies that Joe’s in NYC throws out compared to this one, or that the cooks on the east coast have a process they are used too, the pizza at the Los Angeles location definitely was in better condition and looked as if they LA guys took time and tender loving care putting the pizza together. The crust was a little thicker, and in LA-fashion crispy too.
Where Joe’s NYC is famous for fresh out of the oven pies, and a really thin crust that no one in their right mind would call crispy; the LA spot hasn’t reached the years of perfection in knocking down millimeters off the thickness and doesn’t do the volume to demand out-of-the-oven pizzas every five minutes. That we believe give the NY pies their distinct difference. Or as others believe it could be that the water in Los Angeles is different from the water in NYC. Yeah we use less chlorine maybe?
As taste goes if you miss a slice of NYC, then head to Joe’s because it is damn close!!! The prices for a slice were around $2.50 so this place also makes our “cheap eats” list.
The other spot that just opened is right next to Joe’s at Hollywood and Wilcox, and is a taco stand, err … truck, or restaurant, or a really awesome and creative eatery that serves up some good Mexican food.
The Calle Taco truck, once a real food truck that graced the streets of Los Angeles now sits under an old Hollywood theater marquee near the intersection of Hollywood and Wilcox, slightly back from the sidewalk with tables and chairs in front, giving costumers a place to eat what the truck dishes up.
Calle Tacos should get an award for best-designed restaurant on the boulevard. Not only did the place take a food truck, cut it in half, and place it on the inside of their restaurant so costumers have to order from the taco truck window, they also went all out in gracing the inside of the restaurant with beautiful graffiti murals of Los Angeles, and literally made the entrance to the bathrooms the front door to the food truck too.
Why you ask? All in honor of the many taco / burrito dishing food trucks that everyday feed us on our merry ways through the city. Memorializing in true Hollywood fashion a staple of Los Angeles life and culture. L.A the Blog loves LA, so we love you Calle Tacos.
The food was good, we didn’t try everything on the menu but the carne asade burrito tasted great. While not as cheep as a food truck with tacos at $1.95 and burritos at $5.95, you can definitely get some grub for under the $5, so it also makes the Blogs “cheap eats” list. Check out below for some picks of the place and when in Hollywood be sure to stop in! FYI – the graffiti is by LA-based artist Hex, aka Hector Rios.
UPDATE: We just visited Calle Tacos again and noticed that Tuesday is $0.99 taco day, every Tuesday, and right now if you visit they have a free can of soda if you check in to their facebook page, or tweet about your visit. We scored a great lunch for $3.24!
Los Angeles the Blog 