Four of Them

-A rather brilliant, thoughtful sci-fi in a time when Star Wars rendered such rare. Visually haunting, anyway.

-On some note, Tilda Swinton should play David Bowie. I planted the seed, Hollywood, make it happen.

-Holy shit, Thin White Beast-era Bowie is some kind of androgynous beautiful. And is that not the definition of an ever-lasting sex symbol? Not someone like Megan Fox, who sure, is hot, but has an expiration date. People like Bowie and Swinton and, to some extent, Cate Blanchett (ahem), who appeal to everyone, of any gender or orientation. Who anyone can stare at and not feel weird.

-Well, they will feel weird, but that's because they're staring at someone.

-Which is rude.

-I get the feeling the Michael Clayton poster (the good one) was inspired by this poster.

-Candy Clarke is surely the week link here, which is saying something, because she's rather good.

-Tell me, was it, like, Hollywood creed of the seventies for everyone to go full-frontal?

-As for Criterion supplements, not much to speak of. Interview with Candy Clarke and Rip Torn about characters, Bowie, script, all that. Original trailer, production notes.

-What I like most about Bowie, in the infinite ways I like him (though, strangely, I'm not too crazy for his music, or at least a lot of it), is that he just exudes the whole alien-but-at-the-same-time-tragically-human air that is essential for this role, an alien from a dying planet sent to the Planet of Water (yo) to bring some back (whether salt water would suffice is never addressed). He must be confused (but not the absurd amount of fish-out-of-water someone else would've approached it with, because you have to assume aliens of such technological achievemant would do some research on the planet they were invading, naive, grow to world-weary cynicism, keep a relatively frosty demeanor, but underneath all that, he is still just longing to return to his family, who we can assume are long dead, as with everyone else of his planet.

-Seriously, of all his many film roles (hello, Tesla), this has to be my favorite.