Red Mosquito

Steve Albini wrote:Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

tragabigzanda wrote:

durdencommatyler wrote:It's lost a bit of its edge but GIRLS is still one of the smartest and honest shows on tv.

There are plenty of characters in Solondz films that are likable. I'd argue that he's most interesting when he's making his audience feel icky. And I think that's pretty cool.

But I totally understand your aversion to unlikable characters. I have the same thing with fucking rich, self entitled characters. It's why I can't get into Arrested Development. Those fuckers just make me angry.

Uh, aren't all the girls on Girls basically rich (or parent-funded), self-entitled characters?

Steve Albini wrote:Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

Steve Albini wrote:Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

Simple Torture wrote:I've got lots to say about Franzen, but not enough time to put it together. TL;DR: he's great at crafting really complex, compelling stories, but his sexual politics are all over the fucking map and it's really troubling. And I agree that most of his characters are unlikable, but that's never been a feature that makes me like/hate a text in and of itself.

Steve Albini wrote:Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

lennytheweedwhacker wrote:

Simple Torture wrote:I've got lots to say about Franzen, but not enough time to put it together. TL;DR: he's great at crafting really complex, compelling stories, but his sexual politics are all over the fucking map and it's really troubling. And I agree that most of his characters are unlikable, but that's never been a feature that makes me like/hate a text in and of itself.

can you expand on the sexual politics comment?

tragabigzanda wrote:Lenny, did you get to the "eating her turds" part of Freedom yet?

turned2black wrote:It's good. The author mixes science, history and some really nice details about what training and life is like for many East Africans runners. It's not as inspirational as "Born to Run", but it's very good.

The Argonaut wrote:Sabbath's Theater by Philip Roth!

durdencommatyler wrote:

The Argonaut wrote:Sabbath's Theater by Philip Roth!

Really?!

I want to read that one next.