Each invisible prayer is like a cloud in the air
Tomorrow keeps turning around
We live and we die, we know not why
But I’ll be with you when the deal goes down

- Bob Dylan

If ever there was a paean to the handheld camera in a music video, this is it. Bob Dylan’s “When the Deal Goes Down,” a philosophical countrified waltz from his 2006 hit album Modern Times, and then released as a music video, was shot like a home movie on 8mm film by the celebrated director of “Capote,” Bennett Miller. Featuring starlet turned star Scarlett Johansson (you remember, Barack Obama’s erstwhile pen pal) in a series of nostalgic vignettes, this one is unlikely to interest hip hop fans. Baby Boomers will dig it, though, and fans of Bob and Scarlett.

As someone commented, “That song would bring a tear to a glass eye.”

Javier Bardem was honored by his home country of Spain yesterday. He won the country’s 2008 national film award for his “defense of the acting profession and a constant commitment to Spanish cinema.”

I was introduced to Bardem with his engaging role in Almodovar’s Live Flesh where he played a paralyzed ex-cop who has an unhealthy obsession with both his wife and ex-lover. After seeing that film, I knew that America would be seeing a whole lot of him. Thus it’s no suprise, that this latest honor coincides quite nicely with his Supporting Actor Oscar for No Country for Old Men. Bardem was truly frightening in that role.

Thus, I’m delighted by the change of tone with his latest movie, Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

Trailer Check:

Allen’s using ScarJo again? At least, he’s seeing the world and portraying a new version of the love triangle. But does all that stuff really matter? The inclusion of Javier will be enough to get most people to the theater. Vicky Cristina Barcelona already premiered to positive reviews at Cannes and hits US theaters on August 15th.

(News Source: Yahoo AP)