Every other Friday night, T.J. Byrnes Restaurant and Bar in Manhattan’s Financial District hosts a modestly produced karaoke night. The small, unassuming Irish pub is tucked away behind a towering housing project, and on any such night, nearby residents might hear the echoes of drunken laughter or the faint opening bass notes of The Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me.” For Rutgers professor Fred Solinger and bookstore manager George Carmona, though, this is not just about getting plastered and mumbling through a semi-coherent rendition of “Copacabana”— it’s turf warfare.
It has been a long journey for Darren Aronofsky and his film, The Fountain. This venture has been over six years long but film fans can rejoice because The Fountain is finally being released. It is one of the most emotional and moving films (not just science fiction) I have ever seen. The Fountain is confusing at first but soon you are deeply involved in Tom [played by Hugh Jackman], the scientist/conquistador/space traveler’s journey to find his what he considers his soul.