Richard Linklater's Bernie is part fictionalized, part documentary, and entirely well-made, but the tone of its fictionalized elements put this uncomfortably close to mockumentary. more ›

Not long before seeing Me and Orson Welles, I had re-watched Welles' exceptional film essay and final completed feature, 1974's F for Fake, in which the director appears onscreen and on the soundtrack throughout the film. So as Richard Linklater's new film began, Welles' rich baritone, distinctive accent, and intense yet mischievous eyes were still lingering in my head. It came as a bit of a shock, then, when Christian McKay first appeared on screen with the exact same voice, eyes, and mannerisms as the great charlatan himself. more ›

>> District darling Marion Barry has entered a plea of not guilty on charges surrounding his September traffic stop. Police allege the Ward 8 Councilman was intoxicated and driving an unregistered vehicle when they pulled him over near the White House. Barry says federal authorities are trying to " http://wtop.com/?nid=596&sid=974583">embarrass and discredit" him. Sounds like tough work for the Feds. In the past year alone Barry plead guilty to federal tax evasion and tested positive... more ›

Eric Schlosser is quick to point out that 2006 represents an important, but mostly overlooked, centennial. In his first opportunity to speak following the D.C. premiere of the movie based on his book, Fast Food Nation, Schlosser reminds the audience that it was in 1906 that Upton Sinclair published The Jungle, the classic muckraker that exposed the horrific practices of the meatpacking industry and helped prompt a major overhaul in the way they conducted their business. Schlosser evokes Sinclair to point out both the bleak and the hopeful: that after those reforms, the industry has been slowly backsliding under the collective radar, but that by raising awareness of the problem, the seeds of change can be planted. And with the release of the filmed version of his own industry exposé, Schlosser and his co-conspirator, director and co-screenwriter Richard Linklater, hope to do just that. more ›

Torontoist immediately wins our heart by using the word "Jackass" in a headline. In fact, we love their use of it so much that we're going to use it as much as possible throughout this post. For example, it looks like there are Toronto-area jackasses besides those who misuse the sidewalk: look at the crap on sale on Toronto's craigslist. But it looks like Toronto doesn't contain the kind of jackasses who pee in public... more ›

SFist commeters pose for before and aftershocks when the mayor commemorates a 1906 earthquake...at 4:30 in the morning. A hot tip on the Chronicle vending machines comes in and the SFist war correspondent risks life and limb to post this dispatch from the frontlines. Houstonist announces their new Cops spinoff "World's Funniest Tazer Videos" and the possible cancellation of their pervs' "World's Grossest Bathroom Videos" and PBS trains cams on cows at, uhg, Mootube. Also,... more ›