"Weird" Al Yankovic
wanted to do a parody of Lady Gaga's "Born This Way," so he did what he usually does: he contacted the artist and asked permission. Lady Gaga said she'd have to hear the lyrics, so Weird Al wrote the lyrics and sent them to her. Gaga then said she's have to actually hear the song, so Weird Al went into the studio and recorded it - at which point Gaga refused to give her permission. Weird Al responded by doing something he's never done in his entire career: he's asserted his fair use rights and
made an unapproved parody available to the public.
posted by mightygodking
on Apr 20, 2011 -
538 comments
"
Welcome to the Zion Archive. You have selected Historical File #12-1: The Second Renaissance."
So begins the short film of the same name by Mahiro Maeda
[Flash: 1 2 - QuickTime: 1 2] -- a devastating yet beautiful work of animation.
Originally produced to explain the backstory behind the
Matrix trilogy, Maeda's project ended up telling a story far darker and more affecting than any blockbuster.
Using a blend of
faux documentary footage and
visual metaphor, his serene Instructor relates in biblical tones the saga of Man and Machine, how age-old cruelty and hatred birthed a horrifying, apocalyptic struggle that consumed the world.
Packed with striking imagery and
historical allusions galore, this dark allegory easily transcends the films it was made for.
But while "The Second Renaissance" is arguably the best work to come from the
Matrix franchise, it's hardly alone -- it's just one of the projects made for
The Animatrix, a collection of
nine superb anime films in a
wide variety of styles designed to explore the universe and broaden its scope beyond the usual sci-fi action of the movies.
Click inside for a guide to these films with links to where they can be watched online, along with a look at
The Matrix Comics, a free series of comics, art, and short fiction created for the same purpose by
some of the best talent in the business.
[more inside]
posted by Rhaomi
on Feb 14, 2011 -
54 comments
The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash may be the most elaborate parody of the Beatles ever constructed, including satirical tributes to the appearances on
the Ed Sullivan Show,
Yellow Submarine, and the
rooftop concert at Apple Records. Check out some other fine parodies who picked up where the Rutles left off:
The Mosquitoes on Gilligan's Island,
Chris and the Alphabeats on Sesame Street,
Letter B and
Hey Food by the Beetles, the
Be Sharps on the Simpsons,
A Hard Day's Night of the Living Dead by
the Zombeatles, Peter Cook & Dudley Moore's
L.S. Bumble Bee, the Powerpuff Girls Meet the Beat Alls (parts
1 and
2 with commentary by Mojo Jojo), Beatles spoofs in a
Polish sitcom and a
Bollywood musical, Beatallica sings
A Garage Dayz Nite, the Chasers'
I Am Thesaurus, and the Beatles
go bar mitzvah.
posted by jonp72
on Aug 6, 2007 -
45 comments
So it started with the
original (NSFW) Eric Prydz video . Then we got a
Parody (NSFW?) of the original. Now we have a completely different band doing a
Sequel (NSFW). Hughes Corporation revisits the leg warmer plight of the original song. A continuing saga...
posted by Lord_Pall
on Sep 28, 2006 -
37 comments
That's Mathematics! Warning, contains bad camera work, worse editing, a rather complicated homework problem, a few mathematical in-jokes, illegible chalkboard writing, and a 13 minute performance by Tom Lehrer.
posted by eriko
on Jun 14, 2005 -
29 comments
It's Rodeohead, (MP3 download), the radiohead country and western medley. Please note there is absolutely no reason to post this apart from it's Friday, it's a bank holiday weekend and it made me laugh. If you're looking for in-depth then move along, nothing to see here...
posted by ciderwoman
on May 28, 2004 -
26 comments
I present to you, Richard Cheese. Perhaps the world's greatest twisted musical genius. Take 1 part Weird Al, add some Frank Sinatra, top with a talented musical ensemble, and bake on low — current recipe makes two albums. Seriously now, anyone with a love of music should really check out Mr. Cheese. His cover songs are solid gold. Notable mentions: "Chop Suey!" (
System of a Down), "Crazy" (
Britney Spears), and "I Used To Love Her" (
Guns 'N Roses). And remember, folks, keep on lounging against the machine.
posted by Dark Messiah
on Jan 12, 2003 -
38 comments
Twas the night before Xmas and all through the net,
The geeks would be googling the ascii character set;
Metafilter refreshed on their PCs with care,
In the hopes that their FPP soon would be there;
Then up in the blue there arose such a clatter,
Mathowie sprang up to see what's the matter;
When, what to my wondering eyes there should be,
The canonical list of "Twas" parodies.
posted by Wet Spot
on Dec 22, 2002 -
11 comments
Taking a swipe at celebrity cause-fests: The ever-witty
Pulp (whose latest album, "We Love Life," might
finally be seeing a Stateside release come spring) enlists a host of celebrity impersonators (how many can you point out?) for the video promoting their newest single, "Bad Cover Version."
posted by maura
on Feb 13, 2002 -
6 comments
Alt.Xmas.Music.Lyrics. I've never been accused in the past of only posting serious news item type links - so just to prove that i'm no stick-in-the-mud here is a fun link. It apparently requires no shockwave plugins..... ladies and gentlemen--and especially you cosmopolite European members--I give you, after a wee scroll down and download....
Walking Round In Women's Underwear!! please enjoy this during work hours.
posted by y2karl
on Dec 19, 2001 -
8 comments
