Author Archives: Jonathan Williams

Unknown Hinson was billy before “Squidbillies” was cool

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Long before he became the voice of Early Cuyler on Squidbillies, Unknown Hinson was playing hit (at least in his mind) country songs and brandishing an obliviously alpha male persona that is equal parts Johnny Cash and Bela Lugosi. Though there is little that differentiates Early from Unknown (aside from the tentacles and fangs), you’re not likely to see a Squidbilly on stage performing songs such as “I Cleaned Out A Room (In My Trailer For You).” Known for performing numerous shows a year, Hinson emerges from his trailer park coffin to begin a series of one-off performances tonight with a show at the EARL in Atlanta. Before he takes the stage, he talks to Wrestling with Pop Culture about his new stage show, Squidbillies and his mysterious background.

Photo by Robert Leslie Dean

I’ve seen you perform several times over the past few years and your stage show has evolved with each show. You no longer have a manservant and your band lineup has changed from the first time I saw you. What kind of stage show theatrics do you have planned for these shows and what’s your band look like now?

Well, that’s a good question. This time around I’ll be doing only my songs. I don’t play no songs by nobody else. I just play my own mess. It’s all Unknown Hinson songs and it leans more towards the country-western side of me. Not so much rawk because country-western is my first love.

I don’t know about theatrics. I just get up ‘ere and sing and play my guitar and that’s about it. Who knows what might happen? Different thangs happen different times. Ain’t nothin’ I really plan to happen, you know. I just kind of go with it. I use a steel guitar player, a drummer and a bass player, and, of course, me. I don’t play no covers by nobody, I don’t play no rawk and mess like ‘at. My family had a country-western intervention. I used to play some rawk, but I figured out that my ass was gone burn in hell if I kept that up, so I give it up.

Now that you’ve been doing Squidbillies for a few years, do you ever find that people who may not even know who you are or what you look like recognize you by your voice?

Yessir, it happens all the time. It sure does. Squidbillies is a lot of fun. I’ve been doing it since 2005 and a new season is on the air right now on Cartoon Network‘s Adult Swim. Actually, we’re working on season six, to be released soon.

Yeah, people do recognize… It kind of works both ways. Some people who know me will check out Squidbillies and some people who see Squidbillies get curious about me and come to my shows. So one kindly helps the other, you know what I mean?

Yeah. You’ve had a recurring character on the show named Thunder Clap, who is voiced by professional wrestling legend Mick Foley. What has it been like working with him on those episodes?

Well, you know I don’t get to work with the other voice actors. We do it all in separate studios. I’m located out of North Carolina. Sometimes I will fly to Atlanta to do a session for the show, but it’s usually a special record or something like that. Or we might shoot a promotional video for the show and in that case I would fly to Atlanta. But most of the time they direct me from Atlanta while I’m in a studio here in the Charlotte area. Then they put it all together.

Wrestling is obviously a pretty integral part of the north Georgia setting of Squidbillies, as well as in Charlotte and throughout the South. What are your thoughts on professional wrestling and the Squidbillies episodes about it?

I love it. I think it’s great entertainment. I really do. A lot of people who like me seem to like it, and vice versa. It’s funny how it works like ‘at, but I’ve seen that.

Outside of Squidbillies, have you ever been involved in any kind of professional wrestling show in any way?

Naw sir, I never have. That don’t mean I wouldn’t like to someday, but I never have so far.

I understand a collection of music from Squidbillies will be available as a free download soon. And you’re also working on your own album of new material. When will all that be available?

Yep. There’s an album coming out consisting of the various artists that have contributed songs to the show. I think there going to be a couple of my songs on there that I wrote for the show, as well as several other artists. It should be a lot of fun.

I got my own new CD coming out in time for Christmas. It’s not a Christmas CD, but it’s a new CD for me and it’ll be released in time for Christmas. So far, I think it’s my best work, really. I think it’s right up there in the top two if not number one because it’s a lot of songs from the past year and it’s more reflective of me this time, not so much my take on other sitiations. It’s pretty much what’s coming from my heart and my brain.

For your show in Atlanta tonight, you have the Syrens of the South burlesque troupe opening for you. They’ve opened for you previously in Atlanta, but do they do shows with you outside of Atlanta?

Naw, mostly the only time we work together is when we’re in Atlanta together. They a nice bunch of ladies. I look forward to seeing them again. It’s a lot of fun, but that’s the only time we’ve worked together is when I play Atlanta.

How do you like having them open for you?

I thank it works. It goes right along with what I do. Plus, ain’t nothing wrong with having some purdy girls back in the dressing room, know what I mean?

Right. Do you have any favorites in the troupe?

Naw, I like ’em all. I sure do. They’re a bunch of nice ladies.

I interviewed you a few years ago and asked this question, and I’m sure you’ve answered numerous other times. But I think it bears repeating. How did you get the name Unknown Hinson?

Well, you know, my mama and daddy did not know one another when they conceived me. They was both drunk when they had the sexuals and they never even bothered to find out each other’s name. When my mama discovered that she was with child afterwards, and it was time for me to be born, the doctor was filling out my birth certificate and said, “Miss Hinson, what do you want to name the boy?” Hinson was her maiden name, she weren’t married. She said, “I want to name him after his daddy.” So, you know “Mother: Miss Hinson, Father: Unknown,” ’cause she dun’t know his name, ’cause they’s drunk. That’s how I got it.

Photo by Margo Baker

I know you don’t have much to go on, but have you ever tried to track down your father?

No sir. The only thing she knowd ’bout him was he was not much count. He was a mean, kinda rowdy feller and they just had that one experience together and she didn’t never hear from him no more. So I don’t know if he’s even alive or nothin’. Mama dissappeared when I was ten year old and I run away from home and joined up with a carnival. The fella who run the carnival pretty much raised me till I was about 22 year old. Then I got set up and framed for his murder and they tried and convicted me and sent me to prison for 30 years. I went in ’63 and got out in ’93 and I’ve been playing my chart toppers and writin’ songs and touring as much as I can. Trying to make up for lost time, you know. But I ain’t bitter about spending that time in the joint because, hell, it give me time to write a lot of songs and practice my guitar and my sangin’. Plus I learned how to read and write in ‘ere.

Thangs worked out good. The only thing is I can’t cash no checks because you can’t cash no checks made out to Unknown. I ain’t never had no driver’s license, which is a big, major qualification to be in my band. You got to have a driver’s license and a pay-at-the-pump gas card ’cause I can’t get none. With my name, I can’t get pretty much nothin’. On paper, that is.

What ever happened to Gustav, the manservant that helped you out with such things?

Well, that’s a very unfortunate story. He was a very good friend of mine and he was unfortunately murdered at the first of this year, I’m sorry to say. And that’s really hard for me to say. But he’s no longer with us. He was a fine feller and he was a big help to me. He worked with me for about seven years.

Do you think you’ll ever hire a new manservant?

Naw. Couldn’t nobody ever replace him. Not at all. I never have even considered it. He was my chauffeur and my butler. My manservant, you know. He was a wonderful photographer as well as a fine person and an actor and entertainer. But his life was taken early this year and it was very bad. I sure do miss him and all his friends miss him terribly.

For more information, go to www.unknownhinson.com.

 

 

 

Eric Pigors opens “Deaths Casket” and creates Monsterpieces in time for Halloween

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By Jonathan Williams

For monster artist Eric Pigors, every day is Halloween. Well, at least it should be considering the macabre and maniacal masks, T-shirts, prints and books that come from his Toxictoons collection. While he has worked on such family-friendly Disney hits as The Lion King and The Princess and the Frog, cartoonishly delightful looks at death and dismemberment have always been his forte. But when he suffered a heart attack just before the release of his latest book, Deaths Casket: Art of Unkle Pigors, Pigors realized that he may have been channeling some subconscious concerns about his own health in some of his latest works.

“For the last year I’ve kind of had a weird feeling like, ‘Ugh. I don’t feel like I’m going to be around much longer,'” says Pigors. “A lot of the book is death-themed with cemeteries, mortuaries and stuff like that. So maybe subconsciously it was seeping out of me. I don’t know, maybe I’m just reading too much into what I’m drawing. If I took my book to my shrink I’m sure she’d have a field day.”

Including new material as well as work he has done for Netherworld Haunted House and bands such as the 69 Eyes, the Laughing Dead, Psycho Charger, the Ghastly Ones and Bill Moseley‘s Spider Mountain, the new book is exactly what fans of Pigors’ Toxictoons have come to love.

“It’s pretty much like the art I’ve been doing since the last book came out,” he admits. “It’s 100 pages of new art, but a lot of it’s similar to that book. It has band art in it, stuff I did for Netherworld, Halloween and all the other stuff I usually draw like Frankenstein, vampires, skulls and stuff like that.”

Another new creation for Pigors is the Monsterpieces iPhone app he created with fellow Disney animator Eric Daniels, which features Pigors’ artwork as well as music by Los Straitjackets.

“I worked with his wife Margie Daniels on The Princess and Frog and a hand-drawn 3D featurette for the DVD release of Kung Fu Panda 2,” says Pigors. “He wanted to do an app with an artist and liked what I was doing.”

Though he is recovering well from his ailment, he has still had to lay low this Halloween season, skipping his annual trip to Netherworld and other seasonal festivities. But he says he is still going to decorate his mom’s garage for trick-or-treaters, another of his Halloween traditions. You can also find Pigors and his Toxictoons creations at the Bats Day Holiday Black Market in Anaheim, Calif. on Nov. 6.

For more information, go to www.toxictoons.com.

 

 

 

Voltaire, goth’s pop cultural ambassador, is always ready for Halloween

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By Jonathan Williams

While he is perhaps best known for the darkly satirical gypsy folk music he’s been creating for more than a decade, Voltaire‘s creepily creative talents have seeped over into other areas of pop culture including animation, comic books and collectible toys. With an insider’s view of the goth and geek scene, Voltaire has published books such as Paint It Black: A Guide to Gothic Homemaking and written songs poking fun at Star Trek, making him an annual favorite at pop culture conventions such as Dragon*Con. Following the release of his latest album Riding a Black Unicorn Down the Side of an Erupting Volcano While Drinking from a Chalice Filled with the Laughter of Small Children, which features contributions from David J of Bauhaus, Brian Viglione of the Dresden Dolls, Melora Creager of Rasputina and others, Voltaire set out on the Black Unicorn Cabaret Tour. As he prepares for a performance at Anne Rice‘s The Theatre of the Vampires Ball in New Orleans on Oct. 28, he talks to Wrestling with Pop Culture about his music, Halloween and more.

Your latest album features collaborations with some of your biggest musical influences, as well as some of your best known peers. How did this all-star lineup of goth luminaries come about?

Photo by Scott Irvine

Most of the people on the album are musicians I know personally or have worked with before. The drums are played by Brian Viglione of the Dresden Dolls. He played the drums on my last album and I asked him if he’d return for this one. The cellos are played by Melora Creager of Rasputina. She played cellos on the soundtrack of one of my short films a year or so ago and we recently went on tour together. And David J of Bauhaus plays bass. We’ve run into each other a few times on the road and have played a show or two together. So it really was a case of calling on people I know, whose work I admire and asking them if they’d join me on this record. Don’t be fooled though, just because I know them all doesn’t mean I don’t fanboy a little at the mere thought of it.

As your musical career has progressed, you’ve simultaneously crossed over into practically every other realm of pop culture, from film and comics to video games and children’s songs. Are there any areas you have yet to explore that you’d be interested in delving into? Wrestling, perhaps?

Wrestling is definitely not in the stars for me. I’m a lover, not a fighter, as they say, which is really just a fancy way of saying, “I don’t fight well.” But I did recently write a feature film script which I hope to get made and believe it or not, I’m getting more and more excited about the thought of acting. I’d like to spend more time in front of the camera, especially in horror films. So I think acting and making features is my next move. I’ve also got a novel or two in me, I think. I just don’t know where I will find the time to do all of this stuff.

As steampunk has grown in popularity, your music has gone from being described as goth to steampunk (without much, if any, stylistic change on your part). How do you feel about these different labels being applied to what you do? Conversely, how much crossover do you see amongst your fans between various subcultures?

Well, truth be told, I’m still referred to as “goth,” but I have never made goth music. Seriously, I sound nothing like the Cure or Bauhaus or whatever people call goth these days. Musically, what I do is probably closer to folk. It’s always acoustic, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant, usually about dark subjects. I personally relate to being goth because that’s the scene I grew up in and I’ve always loved the macabre. But I’m not a musician who makes goth music, I’m a goth who makes music. The music in my songs has drawn from folk, country, flamenco, gypsy, classical, rockabilly, jazz, ska and even reggae. It’s the message and snarky viewpoints expressed that define it as “dark.” Over the years I’ve been called goth, darkwave, anti-folk, gypsy punk, dark cabaret and steampunk. It seems like every couple of years a new term comes up and I get lumped in, probably because no one, including myself, has come up with a neat categorization for what I do. At the end of the day, I don’t really care what people call my music as long as they are enjoying it.

Photo by Jimmy Lin

You’ve also become an unofficial spokesperson for these subcultures, having appeared on Fox News, MTV and elsewhere over the years. As someone who so adequately represents some of these spookier elements, what does someone like Voltaire do for Halloween (especially when Halloween falls just after your tour)?

Well, usually I’m performing somewhere. October is hands down my busiest month of the year. Sometimes I feel like the mayor of Halloweentown, which I like quite a bit! Wherever I am, I’m not generally wearing a costume though. There’s no need. It’s the one day of the year I fit right in wherever I go.

What are some of your current projects (musical or otherwise) that your fans can look forward to and where can people find them?

Well as you know, I have a new record out and I’m touring to support it. I also try to make a short film a year. The most recent one is called Odokuro. It’s narrated by Gary Numan. It has just started touring the film festival circuit. I also have some new vinyl toys of my character Deady, some of which came out this summer and some more that are coming out this winter.

For more information, go to www.voltaire.net.

WWE’s Sheamus takes on the Muppets for Halloween’s Raw SuperShow

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By Jonathan Williams

As a former WWE Champion and United States Champion, Sheamus has been one of the fastest rising stars in WWE history. The Irish-born grappler has dominated top tier talents such as John Cena, Randy Orton and, most recently, Christian. But on the Halloween edition of the Raw SuperShow in Atlanta, Sheamus (and the rest of the WWE roster) will face something they’ve never faced before: the Muppets. I recently spoke to Sheamus for a Creative Loafing article about this madcap match-up, but you can read the entire interview here on Wrestling with Pop Culture. You can also listen to Georgia Wrestling Now at 8 p.m. Oct. 30 to hear the full interview and more about the Raw SuperShow featuring the Muppets.

Courtesy WWE

Obviously you came up in Europe as far as your wrestling background goes, but you have had some pretty important moments in your career  in Atlanta. First, at the Royal Rumble last year you had a successful WWE title defense against Randy Orton. Then this year at WrestleMania you defended the U.S. title successfully against Daniel Bryan.

Atlanta is somewhere that I travel through an awful lot, actually. I fly from Tampa, so I always know that Atlanta goes wherever I need to go. Of course, a lot of superstars live in Atlanta, and past superstars like Fit Finlay, are from Atlanta as well. So it’s up the road, but if feels like a local town.

Is there anything that sticks out to you about your matches in Atlanta or coming to Georgia?

The Royal Rumble was very special for me just because I hadn’t been on the road very long. I think it was my third pay-per-view and it was a very unique match. That was, I think, really when Randy Orton started getting real positive feedback from the crowd. Randy had been getting a lot of negative response from the crowd, especially during his feuds with Triple H and Cena. But I remember being in there and the whole Atlanta crowd started chanting, “RKO! RKO!” It was special to me because it gave me a chance to go against a competitor like Randy Orton when he was getting his first positive response. It was pretty cool to know they hated me that much.

Of course, the local guy Cody Rhodes got involved in that match, too.

Yeah, he jumped up there to get a cheap shot at me.

Things have changed quite a bit for you. Like you said, in that match you were clearly not the fan favorite. Coming back for Raw on Halloween, do you know yet what your match will be?

No. We don’t really know until we get to the building. Sometimes we have advertised main events on Raw, and there’s always the dark match that goes on after the show goes off the air. It is a Raw/SmackDown SuperShow and I was on Raw for a long time. Actually, my career started on Raw, then I was traded to SmackDown. I’m a workaholic, I like to do as much as I can. Careers don’t last forever, so I like to do what I can. And the Muppets are going to be there. I’ve been a big fan of the Muppets since I was three years old, so I’m very excited about that. Even Beaker’s going to be there, so maybe Sheamus and Beaker can tag team together. Who knows? It’s going to keep everyone on their toes, including the superstars.

I was going to ask if you know how the Muppets thing is going to work. And it’s on Halloween, so that throws another whole element into the mix. Of course I’ve thought about the Miz and Kermit, Vickie Guerrero and Miss Piggy, but I hadn’t even thought of you and Beaker teaming up.

You’re on the ball, fella. I actually forgot that the Miz looks like Kermit. Kermit’s better looking, though. Miss Piggy and Vickie is a great one, too. I don’t know who Animal would be with. Maybe John Cena. But I definitely hope me and Beaker run into each other during the show. There’s so much variety, especially with them hosting the show. It’s fun to keep things fresh and mix it up. With some of the Muppets and WWE superstars, it could be super chaos in the form of entertainment.

Were the Muppets big in Ireland when you were growing up? Did you see them as much as we saw them here?

I’ll put it this way, me and all me mates, when we were in kindergarten and grade school, the Muppets sold duvet covers, posters, school bags, it was everywhere. Muppets was as big in Ireland and the U.K. as it was in America. There was Muppetmania all over the globe.

Courtesy WWE

What would Sheamus normally be doing on Halloween if it wasn’t the Muppets hosting Raw?

I’m just a normal fella sporting a beautiful Irish tan and spikier hair. I love this time of year, fella, because I don’t have to wear sunscreen all the time. It’s my favorite time of year when the sun goes away, the days get shorter and I can walk around Florida in T-shirts and shorts when everyone else is covering up. During the summer I’m covering up while everyone else is wearing T-shirts and shorts. But this Halloween, Sheamus will be making Christian’s life a misery. If I can keep doing that, I’ll be a happy man.

I know you’ve been a big part of WWE’s anti-bullying campaign, but it wasn’t that long ago that you were one of WWE’s bigger bullies. Why have you had the change of heart over the last few months?

The first thing about it is, we’re global entertainment and what we do onscreen and what we do away from screen is not exactly the same. We are real people and a lot of what happens on television isn’t exactly the same as what happens away from the screen. Our biggest audience is kids and families and we’re trying to give them a positive message to let the kids know that bullying is wrong. We want kids who are getting bullied to talk to adults and talk to teachers, trust them and let them know what’s happening. We believe we have a responsibility as superstars with the voice that we have across the world.

As far me and my character, after I got in that feud with Mark Henry, I think my character has just relaxed a lot more. I felt I had something to prove or felt that the world was against me for a long time there, but now I’m just enjoying the crowd, enjoying the experience, enjoying being on television every week and looking forward to being back in Atlanta on Halloween night with the Muppets at the Raw/SmackDown SuperShow.

Raw SuperShow. $24-$93.05. 8:15 p.m. Oct. 31. (also on the USA Network at 9 p.m.). Philips Arena, 1 Philips Drive, Atlanta, Ga. 404-878-3800, www.wwe.com.

“Michaels vs. Hart” closes the chapter in one of WWE’s most controversial rivalries

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By Dan Kemp

What is there to say that hasn’t already been said about the volatile relationship between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart? Anybody who’s been watching professional wrestling for the past 15 years (or anyone with even a passing interest in what goes on in and out of the ring) should already know at least a little bit about their storied rivalry. Even before the infamous Montreal Screwjob, Michaels and Hart had many great matches, always trying to outdo each other. In fact, their historic matches and constant one-upping helped keep the then-World Wrestling Federation afloat when World Championship Wrestling came to the frontline and began winning in the Monday night television ratings in the ’90s.

Apparently there is still quite a bit to discuss on this matter, as evidenced by the new WWE DVD release WWE Greatest Rivalries: Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart. In this DVD, Jim Ross sits down with the two WWE Hall of Famers and starts off by taking a look at the humble beginnings of each man’s career. There is a nice video montage for each of them, which, if you’ve seen any of WWE’s previous Michaels or Hart releases, is really nothing new. Both men talk about how they broke into the business, who trained them, where they started, etc.

Soon enough, the interview begins to cover when Michaels and Hart crossed paths in the late 1980s. The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) was already a fairly dominant tag team in the WWF when the Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty) made their WWF debut. Hart mentions how impressed he was with what he and Neidhart saw in the young Michaels and Jannetty, and how the Hart Foundation was pushing to face them in the ring. It’s clear that there was a mutual respect between Hart and Michaels from the beginning.

Eventually, the interview leads in the direction that we’ve all been waiting for; the beginning of the rivalry between Michaels and Hart. You’ll be surprised to find out a couple things regarding the events of the mid ’90s, where much of their hatred and disrespect came to fruition. Both men speak candidly about what was happening behind the scenes at the time, and for the first time you’ll be able to see just how bad things truly were between the two men.

Without giving too much away, the interview does end on a high note, as we travel to the present day and see Michaels and Hart reunited. There’s some backstage footage of the two meeting on the night of Hart’s return to Raw in January of 2010. After nearly 15 years, the two legends have patched things up and are moving forward as friends.

Along with the riveting interview, there’s also a slew of matches and in-ring segments on the other two discs in this package. On the second disc, you’ll see some early tag matches between the Hart Foundation and the Rockers, along with several high profile singles matches between Michaels and Hart. If you’re a longtime wrestling fan, you’ve likely already seen most of these matches, but that doesn’t take away from their amazing quality. These two men are two of wrestling’s all-time greats, and they prove it in each of these matches.

The third disc is bit of a letdown. Aside from the iron man title match between the two at WrestleMania XII, the only things on here are the Hall of Fame induction speeches by both men and their in-ring reunion from January 2010. It’s all quality stuff, but, again, stuff we’ve seen before.

Overall, this is a great addition to any wrestling fan’s collection. The quality of WWE’s DVD releases has always been top notch, and this one is no exception. You’ll learn something new about Michaels and Hart, you’ll see some classic matches, and most importantly, you’ll feel the real emotion that both of these men felt during the interview. It’s really something to see that peace has been made between these two WWE Hall of Famers despite the in-ring rivalries, backstage politics and other controversy that came between them for some many years.

For more information, go to www.wweshop.com.

AJ Styles is ready to move up or move on in TNA

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By Jonathan Williams

Before he became a “Phenomenal” standout star in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, AJ Styles made an equally impressive debut  at National Championship Wrestling and NWA Wildside, a Georgia-based National Wrestling Alliance promotion (now known as NWA Anarchy) that has been the breeding ground for numerous other professional wrestling talents such as Abyss, Gunner, R-Truth, New Jack, Evan Bourne and Jimmy Rave. With TNA returning to Georgia this Wednesday for an Impact Wrestling taping in Macon, I spoke to Styles last week in an interview for my new Georgia Wrestling History radio show, Georgia Wrestling Now.

Courtesy Impact Wrestling

In the interview, which will air in its entirety tonight, Styles seems frustrated by the direction his career (and TNA as a company) has been going as of late. Though he seemed poised to carry the company to new heights as the TNA World Heavyweight Champion early last year (as the Hulk Hogan/Eric Bischoff regime assumed power of TNA), he has since fallen to mid-card status while Fortune stablemates Robert Roode and James Storm have become title contenders.

Despite his victory over Christopher Daniels at Bound for Glory earlier this month, as well as Dixie Carter’s return to power in TNA (thanks to Sting‘s victory over Hogan at Bound for Glory) and Storm‘s TNA World Heavyweight Championship victory over Kurt Angle on last week’s Impact Wrestling, Styles does not seem optimistic about TNA right now.

For someone who has held every men’s title in TNA (many on multiple occasions), Styles says there is someone who “still says I don’t possess whatever ‘it’ is.” And whether he’s receiving the ire or accolades of the fans, Styles says his main goal is to entertain them as best he can.

Courtesy Impact Wrestling

“I prefer, first and foremost, that the fans are entertained by me,” he says. “I believe they like to watch me wrestle, so I guess that kind of makes me a good guy. But in the end it’s not me who decides what the fans want; it’s the fans who decide that. That’s the most important thing. That’s how it should be done and hopefully that’s how we’ll do it here in TNA. I’m sorry, Impact Wrestling. I don’t even know anymore. Do I say TNA Impact Wrestling or do I say Impact Wrestling TNA? I’m just going to say Impact Wrestling to go on the safe side.”

 

Tune in tonight at Blogtalkradio.com/psp to hear the entire interview. And catch Styles at the Macon Coliseum this Wednesday and on Spike TV on Thursday.

For more information, go to www.ajstyles.org or www.impactwrestling.com.

 

 

Even a German threesome isn’t exciting in Tom Tykwer’s “3”

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Full of graphic sex, themes of mortality and the origin of life, and inexplicable ballet and poetry vignettes, 3 is everything you want your artsy foreign films to be… except entertaining. While director Tom Tykwer’s most acclaimed film, Run Lola Run, was exceptionally fast paced, he finds his balance with 3, which is exceptionally slow. A tedious watch, 3 fails to bring either the excitement of Run Lola Run or the character development of his more recent films like The Princess and The Warrior and Heaven.

Adam (Devid Striesow) and Hanna (Sophie Rois) in "3"

Perhaps the tedium of the film is an intentional reflection of the tedium of the long-term relationship between main characters Simon (Sebastian Schipper) and Hanna (Sophie Rois), both of whom have ambiguous jobs of a creative nature. Hanna, a doctor of some sort, seems to be the host of a television talk show who moonlights on an ethics committee that determines funding for scientific research. I couldn’t help but chuckle when Simon is asked what it is that he does and he replies that he’s an “art engineer,” and after a pause is asked, “What does that mean?” I’m not sure if the film was being self-aware at this point or if this bit of dialog was included to explain what it is that the characters do, but even with the explanation and the many scenes showing the characters at work, I still have no idea what it is either of them does for a living. I only know that they are very self-important and artistic.

The film is full of heavy-handed symbolism, apparent even in the characters’ names. The three main characters all have biblical names. Simon, a healer in the Bible, ironically has cancer. Likewise, Hanna, a notoriously infertile biblical character, becomes pregnant. Then there’s Adam, the first man. The film’s Adam (Devid Striesow) is a sexually promiscuous, motorcycle-riding, choir-singing, soccer-playing fertility specialist scientist researching stem cells and chimera, the scientific term for a single organism that is comprised of tissues from multiple organisms. Adam is also a father, a karate master and a sailor. All that and he still finds time to pick up guys at the gym! An obvious symbol for transformation and new life, Adam brings passion back into the lives of the couple when he independently meets and becomes intimately involved with each of them.

Adam (Devid Striesow) and Simon (Sebastian Schipper) in "3"

The film is visually interesting, incorporating several editing techniques including a notable Brian De Palma-esque collage of panels that gives us a sampling of the lives of the characters at the beginning of the film and again during the development of their relationships. There’s also a heavily symbolic cross-cutting montage that juxtaposes the removal of Simon’s testicle with Hanna’s initial infidelity. Yes, Simon has testicular cancer, which is only one of the two cancer-related storylines, which is one too many for a movie not about cancer. This allows for one of the most bizarre and offensive aspects of the storyline, where a straight male character suddenly becomes interested in men after being castrated.

The film gets better as it goes along, but watching it is laborious and not just because of the subtitles that move too fast during the rapid bursts of conversation and the overlapping dialog. In whole, the film is not without value, addressing the midlife crisis phenomenon with a unique angle, very relatable to aging hipsters who have failed to find meaning in their artsy careers and non-traditional relationships; who have ended up, despite all efforts to the contrary, in the same type of boring monotonous lifestyles as their parents. Life is a cycle, as this film demonstrates, and there are inevitable phases. The characters in this film find a sort of contentment not by fighting the cycle, but ultimately by surrendering to it, although in an unexpected and non-traditional way.

3. Directed by Tom Tykwer. Starring  Sebastian Schipper, Sophie Rois and Devid Striesow. Not rated.  www.strandreleasing.com.

Review by Jennifer Waller Sibley