"Air Guitar Nation" cranks the make-believe volume up to 11

professor.knowsitall@evpl — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 17:58:00 GMT

How many times has this happened to you...you're listening to music and an epic guitar solo comes on. What do you do?!? You bust out the air guitar, showing onlookers the musical virtuoso you are.

Apparently, air guitar is bigger than I realized. Since 1996, Oulu, Finland has been the home of the Air Guitar World Championships. Essentially the Olympics of air guitar, contestants from all around the world compete to bring this coveted trophy back to their home country. Competitions consist of two rounds: in the first, contestants perform a song of their choosing. The second round is a song picked by the judges, not revealed until the competition, that contestants have to improv. Contestants are judged based on their "airness" and pure rock-ness.

Sadly, the US did not participate on this world stage until 2003. It was then that Americans realized what a travesty this was and the US Air Guitar Championships were founded. After a series of regional competitions, the best performers go to Finland to represent the US.

Air Guitar Nation is a documentary (more along the lines of This is Spinal Tap than a traditional documentary) about the founding of the US Air Guitar Championships, the first competitions in the US, and the journey to the 2003 World Championships (including an air guitar training camp!) in Finland. You'll meet many of the zany US performers, including C. Diddy and Björn Türoque, whose fierce rivalry becomes a central focus of the film.

Air Guitar Nation is extremely entertaining, hilarious, and very well made. How does the US fare in their first outing in the World Championships? Watch the movie and find out for yourself!

Movie Trailer

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More Information

EVPL Catalog: Check availability of Air Guitar Nation at EVPL libraries.
Amazon.com: Buy the movie using this link, and the Public Library Friends will receive a portion of your purchase!
AirGuitarNation.com: Official website of the movie.
AirGuitarUSA.com: Official website of the US Air Guitar Championships.
AirGuitarWorldChampionships.com: Official website of the Air Guitar World Championships.

Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?

HoodooVoodoo@evpl — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 20:28:00 GMT

Morgan Spurlock, director of Super Size Me and the creator of the FX series 30 Days, tries to answer this question by traveling to the Middle East in search of the most wanted man in the world. After Spurlock finds out his girlfriend is pregnant, he must do whatever is possible for his child to grow up in safe and peaceful world. This means only one thing, finding Osama Bin Laden (or OBL as Spurlock calls him). The catch is that he only has seven weeks to complete his mission before his child's birth.

Spurlock travels to Egypt, Morocco, Israel, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and finally Afghanistan in his search for OBL. Along the way he encounters everyday people from the region who are more than willing to help him (most of them anyways) in his search and offer their views on terrorism, the United States (it's not as bad as you think), and what they want in their lives and for their children.

Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden is funny and educational. I highly recommend this film. I have to give credit to Spurlock, he went where most never would and got closer than most have. He's the Grizzly Man of the Middle East, only with a better ending (of course I think Grizzly Man got what he asked for).

For more information check out the following:

The movie's official website

The companion book to the movie

Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden? Trailer

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Don't forget you can put holds on documentary DVDs. Reserve your copy today!

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"Air Guitar Nation" cranks the make-believe volume up to 11

Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?