Two things:
First, an addendum regarding Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet. If there were an extended musical scene at Jabba’s palace in Firefly, they would be the band: the mix of Chinese and Appalachian influences makes that clear. But also the moment of musical apotheosis when two banjos, a cello and a fiddle play Eleanor Rigby, really, was just amazing.
Second, I watched a wonderful movie last night, War, Inc. John Cusack, Joan Cusack, Marisa Tomei, Ben Kingsley, Dan Akroyd. Sort of a spiritual successor to Grosse Pointe Blank, a favorite movie of mine. It is a sort of near-future corporate dystopian view of war, and a satire of US foreign policy and corporate greed. Blatantly but excellently done.