The third season of Madmen started this past Sunday, and it was good to see how the boys at Sterling-Cooper were faring under their new ownership.
One of the things I like about Madmen is that it never knocks you over the head. There was a lot of hype about this premiere, but it did not try to do too much...and what it did do, the storylines that will emerge more this season, it did so carefully and delicately, for the most part, weaving a story rather than pounding it out.
As viewers, we all know that Sal is gay, but he doesn't know it really. Well---he may have a hint now! And Don's not-so-subtle warning to him, coached in a tag line for the London Fog account was classic, "Limit Your Exposure." But there was no big scene, or confrontation about what Don saw, and that is in keeping not only with Don's character, but with the time. What can Don say? First of all with his secret life?, and second of all, he has no experience in confronting a man with a different sexuality. And also, he needs Sal's talent at the office.
The new boss is an interesting character. Pitting Pete and Ken against each is either genius or suicide. He obviously sees creating conflict as a good thing, and I think we will see more of his manipulation as the season progresses. And Pete is so good at whining..."Why can't I get anything good all at once?" he whines to his wife!
And has Don changed? He is acting like a good family man, but he was ready to get it on with the stewardess. But was he somewhat reluctant? It seemed to me like he really needed to be talked into it. Almost like he was doing it very half-heartedly, as if it was a remembrance of how he is supposed to act as a macho guy, an alpha male.
A good start to a season that seems like it may be even more complex and layered that the last. Ah what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive. Looking forward to more deception and great entertainment from Madmen.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Movie- The Class
The Class is a Oscar nominated film, nominated as best foreign film. It did not win.
I had heard a lot about The Class (2008) most of it very praise worthy. How it was innovative and showed how life in French schools really is, using the real kids to play out the scenarios of the film.
You know what? It was not real at all, and its innovations left the movie boring, and worse, pointless.
I am pretty open to new forms of story telling and innovation in films, but this just did not work for me. It is about a tough classroom in Paris, and acts like it is a documentary, but it isn't. All the situations are set up, and the people (not actors) improvise the scenarios. People acting like they are teachers and students, but not really actors.
Now the premise is that this is a tough school...well maybe in Paris it is, but here, it is not really so tough. And that the teacher gets into debates with students about things like his own sexuality, which the kids question, is absurd. He lets the kids totally control the classroom, and he seems to have no clue about how to enact any discipline or standards.
The film was a mess. As I said, boring and pointless. I would not recommend it to anyone.
I had heard a lot about The Class (2008) most of it very praise worthy. How it was innovative and showed how life in French schools really is, using the real kids to play out the scenarios of the film.
You know what? It was not real at all, and its innovations left the movie boring, and worse, pointless.
I am pretty open to new forms of story telling and innovation in films, but this just did not work for me. It is about a tough classroom in Paris, and acts like it is a documentary, but it isn't. All the situations are set up, and the people (not actors) improvise the scenarios. People acting like they are teachers and students, but not really actors.
Now the premise is that this is a tough school...well maybe in Paris it is, but here, it is not really so tough. And that the teacher gets into debates with students about things like his own sexuality, which the kids question, is absurd. He lets the kids totally control the classroom, and he seems to have no clue about how to enact any discipline or standards.
The film was a mess. As I said, boring and pointless. I would not recommend it to anyone.
Movie- Chaplin: The Movie
I had never seen this movie, that put Robert Downey Jr. on the map as one of the top Hollywood actors, but I always wanted to...And after seeing Chaplin: The Movie (1992, I realized I should have seen this masterpiece years ago.
The movie traces the life and career of Charlie Chaplin, one of Hollywood's most legendary figures and the creator of the iconic character, The Little Tramp. From his beginnings in Vaudeville on the London circuit, the movie is beautiful to look at, and the settings are perfect...the dirtiness of London at the end of the 1800's is almost visceral. The acting of the kids portraying the young Chaplin, from boyhood through adolescence is excellent. You see the underpinnings of Chaplin's sadness (that is the basis of all good comedy) and his enmity towards the establishment is seeded in his early experiences of being sent to the work house as a boy.
And then taking on the role of Chaplin from a young man to an old man is the absolutely brilliant Downey. He was Chaplin. He embodied him, he breathed him, he became him. From his start in the early comedic, silent movies we see his creation of The Little Tramp, the character who starred in hundreds of short and long movies.
The grand Hollywood legends are here...especially Douglas Fairbanks, who was one of Chaplin's closest friends. The atmosphere is rich with star power and with Chaplain's poor choices in women. One failed relationship after the other and as his true relationship, the one he valued over all the others, was his craft, his art.
The talkies are coming, and Chaplain reluctantly adapted, taking on Hitler and the Nazis in his satiric and biting "The Great Dictator." But along the way he crossed paths and made an enemy of J. Edgar Hoover, who saw in "The Great Dictator" a indictment of all authority, and goes after Chaplin in the McCarthy hearings.
We follow now into his old age, living away from the U.S. And Downey stays with the character so well, and looks like him as an older man too. He is given an honorary Oscar and allowed to enter the U.S. for that. I looked at the actual clip of this on YouTube...Wow, Downey has him down pat!
A great film, Downey is surrounded by a supporting cast that is up to the task, Kevin Klein as Fairbanks especially, with small roles for Dan Aykroyd, Marisa Tomei and Diane Lane among others.
This film is funny, touching, moving, thoughtful and thought provoking. And above all, is Downey at his best.
The movie traces the life and career of Charlie Chaplin, one of Hollywood's most legendary figures and the creator of the iconic character, The Little Tramp. From his beginnings in Vaudeville on the London circuit, the movie is beautiful to look at, and the settings are perfect...the dirtiness of London at the end of the 1800's is almost visceral. The acting of the kids portraying the young Chaplin, from boyhood through adolescence is excellent. You see the underpinnings of Chaplin's sadness (that is the basis of all good comedy) and his enmity towards the establishment is seeded in his early experiences of being sent to the work house as a boy.
And then taking on the role of Chaplin from a young man to an old man is the absolutely brilliant Downey. He was Chaplin. He embodied him, he breathed him, he became him. From his start in the early comedic, silent movies we see his creation of The Little Tramp, the character who starred in hundreds of short and long movies.
The grand Hollywood legends are here...especially Douglas Fairbanks, who was one of Chaplin's closest friends. The atmosphere is rich with star power and with Chaplain's poor choices in women. One failed relationship after the other and as his true relationship, the one he valued over all the others, was his craft, his art.
The talkies are coming, and Chaplain reluctantly adapted, taking on Hitler and the Nazis in his satiric and biting "The Great Dictator." But along the way he crossed paths and made an enemy of J. Edgar Hoover, who saw in "The Great Dictator" a indictment of all authority, and goes after Chaplin in the McCarthy hearings.
We follow now into his old age, living away from the U.S. And Downey stays with the character so well, and looks like him as an older man too. He is given an honorary Oscar and allowed to enter the U.S. for that. I looked at the actual clip of this on YouTube...Wow, Downey has him down pat!
A great film, Downey is surrounded by a supporting cast that is up to the task, Kevin Klein as Fairbanks especially, with small roles for Dan Aykroyd, Marisa Tomei and Diane Lane among others.
This film is funny, touching, moving, thoughtful and thought provoking. And above all, is Downey at his best.
Book-The Conspiracy
John Hersey continues to impress me with his writing. He never hits the same subject twice and always has a different style, but every book I have read of his is impressive, smart and enjoyable.
In The Conspiracy, Hersey handles historical fiction with a great panache, tackling the Roman emperor Nero. Nero has become corrupt and his secret police think there may a conspiracy to assassinate him among the intelligentsia of Rome. This story is based on a lot of historical documents, and actually did happen. Hersey uses the names of the real people involved in this "conspiracy" some of the leading figures of Rome at that time, like the philosopher Seneca.
But how he tells this story is what makes it work---Hersey uses letters, (actually more like memos) from Tigellinus, Nero's right hand man, and the head of the secret police. Today these would be e-mails back and forth between the two. In these notes you see the two paranoid and wanting to hold onto power, pretty much suspicious of everyone who did not kiss-ass to Nero. They start inventing little traps for the leading figures to fall into. "If they say this, then that means they are after him."
When the leading men do not fall into the trap, they become even more suspicious. They figure if they have not found anything on Seneca et al, then the conspiracy is even deeper than they thought.
When they finally arrest the men, and torture them for names of other conspirators, they congratulate themselves on a job well done, protecting a corrupt and depraved emperor. Until they are executing Lucan, one of the last of the bunch. He mocks them as he is dying, and tells them plainly...there was never a conspiracy. You made this all up, and set up so many traps that we could not help but be seen as having this plan.
When Hersey wrote this book, is was considered to be a thinly veiled challenge to the Nixon White House...and that was before Watergate. But I think this kind of political paranoia is also reminiscent of a more contemporary White House...one that saw anyone who did not agree with them as a terrorist ally. One who would resort to endangering CIA agents lives, and the worst kind of character assassination, to put down "enemies," and keep power.
I don't usually quote from the books I review, but there is a passage in this one, about the abuse of power and tyranny, that I found really spoke to me. It is from a woman who comes from low birth, to a friend who is a poet and considered a leading man of Rome:
"The effects of tyranny, my dearest one, are to be seen not so much in executions, privations, surveillances, matricide and fratricide, ruined reputations, unjust trials, exile and murder, shocking event of the capital; no, tyranny has finally achieved its foul purpose when among the many, scatter at large, there are acquiescence, apathy, complacency, bland acceptance of outrage, pride in vulgar triumphs, blurring of the meaning of words, confusion in moral standards- in short, a blight of communal character. It is when people who are thought of as good solid citizens, whose who make up the backbone of the populace, become touched by this blight and do not realize it, become not only infected but the infectors-this is when tyranny has won the day. The 'good' citizens then say: What a beautiful day! What a fine year this has been! Are you going to the amphitheater this afternoon?"
John Hersey was not just writing about the Roman Empire.
In The Conspiracy, Hersey handles historical fiction with a great panache, tackling the Roman emperor Nero. Nero has become corrupt and his secret police think there may a conspiracy to assassinate him among the intelligentsia of Rome. This story is based on a lot of historical documents, and actually did happen. Hersey uses the names of the real people involved in this "conspiracy" some of the leading figures of Rome at that time, like the philosopher Seneca.
But how he tells this story is what makes it work---Hersey uses letters, (actually more like memos) from Tigellinus, Nero's right hand man, and the head of the secret police. Today these would be e-mails back and forth between the two. In these notes you see the two paranoid and wanting to hold onto power, pretty much suspicious of everyone who did not kiss-ass to Nero. They start inventing little traps for the leading figures to fall into. "If they say this, then that means they are after him."
When the leading men do not fall into the trap, they become even more suspicious. They figure if they have not found anything on Seneca et al, then the conspiracy is even deeper than they thought.
When they finally arrest the men, and torture them for names of other conspirators, they congratulate themselves on a job well done, protecting a corrupt and depraved emperor. Until they are executing Lucan, one of the last of the bunch. He mocks them as he is dying, and tells them plainly...there was never a conspiracy. You made this all up, and set up so many traps that we could not help but be seen as having this plan.
When Hersey wrote this book, is was considered to be a thinly veiled challenge to the Nixon White House...and that was before Watergate. But I think this kind of political paranoia is also reminiscent of a more contemporary White House...one that saw anyone who did not agree with them as a terrorist ally. One who would resort to endangering CIA agents lives, and the worst kind of character assassination, to put down "enemies," and keep power.
I don't usually quote from the books I review, but there is a passage in this one, about the abuse of power and tyranny, that I found really spoke to me. It is from a woman who comes from low birth, to a friend who is a poet and considered a leading man of Rome:
"The effects of tyranny, my dearest one, are to be seen not so much in executions, privations, surveillances, matricide and fratricide, ruined reputations, unjust trials, exile and murder, shocking event of the capital; no, tyranny has finally achieved its foul purpose when among the many, scatter at large, there are acquiescence, apathy, complacency, bland acceptance of outrage, pride in vulgar triumphs, blurring of the meaning of words, confusion in moral standards- in short, a blight of communal character. It is when people who are thought of as good solid citizens, whose who make up the backbone of the populace, become touched by this blight and do not realize it, become not only infected but the infectors-this is when tyranny has won the day. The 'good' citizens then say: What a beautiful day! What a fine year this has been! Are you going to the amphitheater this afternoon?"
John Hersey was not just writing about the Roman Empire.
Monday, August 17, 2009
The Andrew Awards-2008 Best Foreign Film
This is for the 2008 awards ceremony, 2007 movies in the category of Best Foreign Film, which finally was closed out when we saw Katyn.
I have to digress just a bit here. When people ask what movie I recently saw, and I say , "Oh a foreign film..." they inevitably hear me say "porn film." So I am having to enunciate and make foreign tow syllables..."For-in." Now c'mon... I know I have a reputation, but seriously...I watch a lot of For-IN movies too!
Anyway the nominees for best foreign film are: Beaufort from Israel, The Counterfeiters from Austria, Katyn from Poland, Mongol from Kazakhstan and 12 from Russia. The Academy picked The Counterfeiters.
Never really got into Beaufort. While good, I did not feel any connection to the story or characters. 12 was again very good, but it did not have the flow, and was overly long. Both Katyn and Mongol were excellent, and Mongol will have a second part chronicling the rise of Genghis Khan. But nothing else could compare to The Counterfeiters. They win the Andrew Award for Best Foreign Film.
This movie was all you could want from a movie. Deeply moving, made you thing, a compelling situation (based on truth). Moral dilemmas are faced by the residents of a German concentration camps: live and help the Nazis by making counterfeit money to weaken the British economy, or die for not helping. The Counterfeiters was a masterpiece in every way.
All these films deserve watching. I love that I can so many of these films on Netflix...watching the movies gives you a different world view, and I like seeing things from a new standpoint.
I have to digress just a bit here. When people ask what movie I recently saw, and I say , "Oh a foreign film..." they inevitably hear me say "porn film." So I am having to enunciate and make foreign tow syllables..."For-in." Now c'mon... I know I have a reputation, but seriously...I watch a lot of For-IN movies too!
Anyway the nominees for best foreign film are: Beaufort from Israel, The Counterfeiters from Austria, Katyn from Poland, Mongol from Kazakhstan and 12 from Russia. The Academy picked The Counterfeiters.
Never really got into Beaufort. While good, I did not feel any connection to the story or characters. 12 was again very good, but it did not have the flow, and was overly long. Both Katyn and Mongol were excellent, and Mongol will have a second part chronicling the rise of Genghis Khan. But nothing else could compare to The Counterfeiters. They win the Andrew Award for Best Foreign Film.
This movie was all you could want from a movie. Deeply moving, made you thing, a compelling situation (based on truth). Moral dilemmas are faced by the residents of a German concentration camps: live and help the Nazis by making counterfeit money to weaken the British economy, or die for not helping. The Counterfeiters was a masterpiece in every way.
All these films deserve watching. I love that I can so many of these films on Netflix...watching the movies gives you a different world view, and I like seeing things from a new standpoint.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Movie-Katyn
Katyn was nominated for the 2007 (presented in 2008) Oscar as best foreign film. I t did not win.
The name Katyn is a place...a forested area of Poland where 20,000 Polish officers and intelligentsia were systematically executed by Soviet troops invading the country in WWII.
The Soviets blamed the Nazis, and described in detail the Nazi atrocities. The Nazis of course blamed the Soviets. And with all this blame, the Katyn tragedy kept being swept under the carpet. But his movie follows the saga, the blame game and the repercussions on the families of those who were killed.
Katyn (2007) is more series of chronological vignettes with many of the same characters, from the Soviet and Nazi invasions of Poland in 1939 through the end of the war and beyond. And it really follows the back and forth of the propaganda machines. It also shows how people could not even mention Katyn without causing controversy. So this film is a breakthrough event about a terrible event, that no one has been able to talk about much.
It is well acted and well produced. But it is hard to watch, especially when the get to the truth of the executions, and show how they were done graphically.
This is an important movie in world cinema, and probably for Poland. It is cathartic and devastating. And for those who are interested in history, another important event that we never learned about in school is brought to light.
The name Katyn is a place...a forested area of Poland where 20,000 Polish officers and intelligentsia were systematically executed by Soviet troops invading the country in WWII.
The Soviets blamed the Nazis, and described in detail the Nazi atrocities. The Nazis of course blamed the Soviets. And with all this blame, the Katyn tragedy kept being swept under the carpet. But his movie follows the saga, the blame game and the repercussions on the families of those who were killed.
Katyn (2007) is more series of chronological vignettes with many of the same characters, from the Soviet and Nazi invasions of Poland in 1939 through the end of the war and beyond. And it really follows the back and forth of the propaganda machines. It also shows how people could not even mention Katyn without causing controversy. So this film is a breakthrough event about a terrible event, that no one has been able to talk about much.
It is well acted and well produced. But it is hard to watch, especially when the get to the truth of the executions, and show how they were done graphically.
This is an important movie in world cinema, and probably for Poland. It is cathartic and devastating. And for those who are interested in history, another important event that we never learned about in school is brought to light.
Movie-Eternal
Eternal (2005) was not that great a movie. Acting was sub par, and the story was not that great. But any movie with hot, lesbian vampires can't be all bad!!! LOL!
Women are disappearing in Montreal, including the wife of police detective Raymond Pope. He starts tracking clues down and it leads to a mystery woman (hot lesbian vampire). There is some fun, hokey stuff here, but it is very B movie. If you are the mood for that though (and I was this night) it works just fine.
It was also nice to see Montreal scenes. Still love that city!
Did I mention hot lesbian vampires and seduction scenes?
Women are disappearing in Montreal, including the wife of police detective Raymond Pope. He starts tracking clues down and it leads to a mystery woman (hot lesbian vampire). There is some fun, hokey stuff here, but it is very B movie. If you are the mood for that though (and I was this night) it works just fine.
It was also nice to see Montreal scenes. Still love that city!
Did I mention hot lesbian vampires and seduction scenes?
Movie- Dot the I
Dot the I (2003) is a tricky little movie, with twists and turns that surprise, but actually make sense.
Starring Gael García Bernal, it is a love story, at least seemingly. Woman is engaged, and at her bachelorette party in a French restaurant, an old tradition is broken out...she gets to kiss any man she wishes to for a last kiss before getting hitched. She chooses Kit (Bernal) and the kiss goes on, and is intense. The spell is broken and she leaves the restaurant, but Kit finds her and woos her.
The guy she is going to marry isn't a bad guy it seems, but there is no real fire for him in her. She is doing it because it is safe.
And then the twists begin!
And I won't tell them here, because if you watch it, it gives too much away.
The chemistry between Kit and Carmen (Natalia Verbeke) is palpable. And the two actors are excellent in their roles, Carmen, slightly damaged; Kit so intrigued with her, wanting to give her passion.
A decent story, good acting and unfamiliar. but smart twists. This was a pretty good movie.
Starring Gael García Bernal, it is a love story, at least seemingly. Woman is engaged, and at her bachelorette party in a French restaurant, an old tradition is broken out...she gets to kiss any man she wishes to for a last kiss before getting hitched. She chooses Kit (Bernal) and the kiss goes on, and is intense. The spell is broken and she leaves the restaurant, but Kit finds her and woos her.
The guy she is going to marry isn't a bad guy it seems, but there is no real fire for him in her. She is doing it because it is safe.
And then the twists begin!
And I won't tell them here, because if you watch it, it gives too much away.
The chemistry between Kit and Carmen (Natalia Verbeke) is palpable. And the two actors are excellent in their roles, Carmen, slightly damaged; Kit so intrigued with her, wanting to give her passion.
A decent story, good acting and unfamiliar. but smart twists. This was a pretty good movie.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Movie-Imagining Argentina
Imagining Argentina (2004) is the kind of movie that warns against too much mixing of genres...at least if you do it, you have to be careful about it.
It seems at first to be a social film, about the military dictatorship in Argentina in the 70's, where thousands of people "disappeared" if they spoke out against the government. And it could have been good at that. But the main character, played by Antonio Banderas, suddenly develops psychic powers when his wife becomes one of the disappeared, and he can tell if they have lived or died, or what their fate will be in the future.
And it just doesn't work. Be one or the other, in this case, but it did not work in any way to try and be both social and supernatural.
And by the way, I LOVE Emma Thompson, but she should never try a Latin accent again. No no no.
It seems at first to be a social film, about the military dictatorship in Argentina in the 70's, where thousands of people "disappeared" if they spoke out against the government. And it could have been good at that. But the main character, played by Antonio Banderas, suddenly develops psychic powers when his wife becomes one of the disappeared, and he can tell if they have lived or died, or what their fate will be in the future.
And it just doesn't work. Be one or the other, in this case, but it did not work in any way to try and be both social and supernatural.
And by the way, I LOVE Emma Thompson, but she should never try a Latin accent again. No no no.
Movie-Arranged
This 2007 movie, though small in scope, was very good with its premise...At a New York school, 2 young teachers meet, one Muslim and one an Orthodox Jew. Many expect them to dislike each other, but they find themselves developing a friendship based on all the presumptions people make about them.
As they get to know each other, they find another commonality, they both live in a culture that arranges their marriage. And this tie binds their frienship, as they share each other's stories of bad picks and meetings with potential husbands.
Both actresses in Arranged are exceptional. Both show a naturalness and an array of emotions, that seem true. That both characters show their cultures in a mostly positive light, and that their journey into friendship is not without some bumps, also seems very true.
They are not trying to change the world, but in forming their friendship, they are, in a small way. Because really, if people are friends, in opposing cultures, that is a small miracle...maybe a start to changing the world after all.
As they get to know each other, they find another commonality, they both live in a culture that arranges their marriage. And this tie binds their frienship, as they share each other's stories of bad picks and meetings with potential husbands.
Both actresses in Arranged are exceptional. Both show a naturalness and an array of emotions, that seem true. That both characters show their cultures in a mostly positive light, and that their journey into friendship is not without some bumps, also seems very true.
They are not trying to change the world, but in forming their friendship, they are, in a small way. Because really, if people are friends, in opposing cultures, that is a small miracle...maybe a start to changing the world after all.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Book-Novel Without a Name
This is a grim book, a book about war and the effect constant fighting has on one person, a fighter in the North Vietnamese army. Novel Without a Name by Duong Thu Houng is a book about Quan's disillusionment, not only with the political institutions and propagandas perpetuated by them, but with everyone around him...maybe even in himself.
While Americans are the enemy in the book, it is universal. How young men fight the wars that old men start, and how wily politicians make money off the misery of others. Quan initially is a big supporter of the war, he gladly and proudly joins up. After 10 years of fighting, and losing so many friends, he is seeing the hollowness of the propaganda phrases, he sees the negative change that has been come to his friends and him, the hardness and the meanness, and he longs for the days of simplicity.
This book is grim, and very introspective. It is not about glory and honor, but about dirt and blood and starvation. It is about a journey of one fighter, a journey both physical and psychological. It is about being alone and the realization that with all the killing Quan has done and the dying he has seen, life has become worse for him, and his country. Slogans be damned, they do not reflect the truth.
It is a very good book. The writing is terse at times, and not given to sympathy. It describes, and lets us know Quan's thoughts, but does not imbue them with nobility or great visions of clarity. Quan stumbles to his insight, slowly and painfully, with death his constant companion. It is a book about war, that I think has the ring, or the stink, of truth about it. The author herself was a soldier in the war, and herself became disillusioned with her leaders. I think the authenticity shows.
While Americans are the enemy in the book, it is universal. How young men fight the wars that old men start, and how wily politicians make money off the misery of others. Quan initially is a big supporter of the war, he gladly and proudly joins up. After 10 years of fighting, and losing so many friends, he is seeing the hollowness of the propaganda phrases, he sees the negative change that has been come to his friends and him, the hardness and the meanness, and he longs for the days of simplicity.
This book is grim, and very introspective. It is not about glory and honor, but about dirt and blood and starvation. It is about a journey of one fighter, a journey both physical and psychological. It is about being alone and the realization that with all the killing Quan has done and the dying he has seen, life has become worse for him, and his country. Slogans be damned, they do not reflect the truth.
It is a very good book. The writing is terse at times, and not given to sympathy. It describes, and lets us know Quan's thoughts, but does not imbue them with nobility or great visions of clarity. Quan stumbles to his insight, slowly and painfully, with death his constant companion. It is a book about war, that I think has the ring, or the stink, of truth about it. The author herself was a soldier in the war, and herself became disillusioned with her leaders. I think the authenticity shows.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Where the Turf Meets the Surf
I took a day off work last weeks, and Sharlynn and I went to the Del Mar Racetrack to see the horses run. This is something we enjoy almost every year, and this year Sharlynn got us grandstand seats. Now we did not stay in our seats the whole time, we wandered around, but it was really nice to have them to relax a bit. And we stayed for all the races because we had them.
Nine races that day, and Sharlynn did great, making money in the last 8 races STRAIGHT! She even brought in some hauls of over $50!! Basically she paid for our day and my margaritas (which are, shall we say, PRI-CEY).
You can see some pics on the blog site, and we had a lot of fun! Seeing the horses, shouting for your bet to come in the money! Having some drinks and people watching! And wow! Very pretty women there! Of course my own wife included! We ever ran into Mo and Sarah, some people we had met at a MeetUp group.
Very fun day with my baby!
Nine races that day, and Sharlynn did great, making money in the last 8 races STRAIGHT! She even brought in some hauls of over $50!! Basically she paid for our day and my margaritas (which are, shall we say, PRI-CEY).
You can see some pics on the blog site, and we had a lot of fun! Seeing the horses, shouting for your bet to come in the money! Having some drinks and people watching! And wow! Very pretty women there! Of course my own wife included! We ever ran into Mo and Sarah, some people we had met at a MeetUp group.
Very fun day with my baby!
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Movie-Religulous
I must admit, as I am getting older, I am becoming more liberal and more suspecting of the institutions of the world that seem to be keeping all of us from having peace and prosperity. Chief among the intuitions on my skeptical list are all organized religions.
So when I saw the movie Religulous (2008), it spoke to me. I mean, it was side-splitting funny, as Bill Maher takes on religion, and even the concept of god. But it also meant more than that...here is someone who has the platform to say..."This is Bullshit!" and does it.
Look, and this is not the movie but my own thoughts for sec...I was raised very Catholic...an altar boy and everything. But I learned that the "church" is not about god...it is about sustaining the church. Whether that means hating others, collaborating with the Nazis, hiding priests who have molested children or ordering assassinations as many popes have..."Well," they say, "we are protecting the church."
I don't remember that being OK in Jesus' words, do you?
Bill Maher says this a lot...because he has read the bible, and he calls people out on what they believe that is not ...well...actually in the bible. And he does it brilliantly. And absolutely hilariously!!!!
He takes on the Catholic church, evangelists, Mormons, and many other believers, using what is actually in the bible to question their beliefs. He calls them on their hypocrisy, and their un-Jesus like thoughts. And he does this interspersed with video that left me gasping for air I was laughing so hard.
But his message is a serious one...his question really. Are we not worse off as species, because we believe so strongly that our religion is right, and others wrong? And more basically, how can we believe a lot of the utter CRAP uttered by leaders of religions? How can we believe in the infallibility of popes, when they have proven to be so fallible? How can we believe that Jesus, as one evangelist says, wore the best linen and was rich? Must have missed that passage in the New Testament. I thought he said it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven---Oh there I go..actually paying attention to what Jesus was saying, rather than to the preacher. Silly me!
A fantastic movie!
So when I saw the movie Religulous (2008), it spoke to me. I mean, it was side-splitting funny, as Bill Maher takes on religion, and even the concept of god. But it also meant more than that...here is someone who has the platform to say..."This is Bullshit!" and does it.
Look, and this is not the movie but my own thoughts for sec...I was raised very Catholic...an altar boy and everything. But I learned that the "church" is not about god...it is about sustaining the church. Whether that means hating others, collaborating with the Nazis, hiding priests who have molested children or ordering assassinations as many popes have..."Well," they say, "we are protecting the church."
I don't remember that being OK in Jesus' words, do you?
Bill Maher says this a lot...because he has read the bible, and he calls people out on what they believe that is not ...well...actually in the bible. And he does it brilliantly. And absolutely hilariously!!!!
He takes on the Catholic church, evangelists, Mormons, and many other believers, using what is actually in the bible to question their beliefs. He calls them on their hypocrisy, and their un-Jesus like thoughts. And he does this interspersed with video that left me gasping for air I was laughing so hard.
But his message is a serious one...his question really. Are we not worse off as species, because we believe so strongly that our religion is right, and others wrong? And more basically, how can we believe a lot of the utter CRAP uttered by leaders of religions? How can we believe in the infallibility of popes, when they have proven to be so fallible? How can we believe that Jesus, as one evangelist says, wore the best linen and was rich? Must have missed that passage in the New Testament. I thought he said it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven---Oh there I go..actually paying attention to what Jesus was saying, rather than to the preacher. Silly me!
A fantastic movie!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Movie-Forgetting Sarah Marshall
I must admit, I am often disappointed when it comes to comedies. Many times when others are saying LOL, I am saying stupid or just not very funny.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) was a very pleasant exception to the rule. Not only LOL funny, but also has some touching moments, and a few life lessons. Who woulda thought all that from a Judd Apatow film?
One of the reasons I LOVE Netflix is that I can get the unrated version of the film. So we are treated to one of Apatow's stock in trade---yes---full frontal male nudity! LOL!!!! I read an interview with him in Playboy, and he just finds this funny. But has has very strict time limits for how long male genitalia can be shown, becomes it quickly becomes unfunny or gross.
Anyway, this movie, about Peter (Jason Segal) losing his girlfriend, a hot TV actress named Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), and going to Hawaii to get over her, with her and her new boyfriend staying at the same resort...well, it is damn funny. It is in the deatails first of all. Sarah stars in a TV crime procedural show, aka CSI. And the scenes from the show are hilarious, as we realize that we have actually watched shows like this. Details like this make the movie.
And the acting is great! You feel like much of it is somewhat improvised, and it makes the dialogue and interactions feel very natural. Jason Segal and Kristen Bell both have comedic chops, and Mila Kundis as the other woman/ true love exudes a pretty amazing free spiritness...you feel like this is really her personality.
Most of all, as I mentioned...it is funny. You feel like it is familiar, but then it comes at you in a new direction, with details that you can relate to, and an awkwardness (another Apatow staple) that makes it very fresh.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) was a very pleasant exception to the rule. Not only LOL funny, but also has some touching moments, and a few life lessons. Who woulda thought all that from a Judd Apatow film?
One of the reasons I LOVE Netflix is that I can get the unrated version of the film. So we are treated to one of Apatow's stock in trade---yes---full frontal male nudity! LOL!!!! I read an interview with him in Playboy, and he just finds this funny. But has has very strict time limits for how long male genitalia can be shown, becomes it quickly becomes unfunny or gross.
Anyway, this movie, about Peter (Jason Segal) losing his girlfriend, a hot TV actress named Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), and going to Hawaii to get over her, with her and her new boyfriend staying at the same resort...well, it is damn funny. It is in the deatails first of all. Sarah stars in a TV crime procedural show, aka CSI. And the scenes from the show are hilarious, as we realize that we have actually watched shows like this. Details like this make the movie.
And the acting is great! You feel like much of it is somewhat improvised, and it makes the dialogue and interactions feel very natural. Jason Segal and Kristen Bell both have comedic chops, and Mila Kundis as the other woman/ true love exudes a pretty amazing free spiritness...you feel like this is really her personality.
Most of all, as I mentioned...it is funny. You feel like it is familiar, but then it comes at you in a new direction, with details that you can relate to, and an awkwardness (another Apatow staple) that makes it very fresh.
Book- One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
A grim book, about the Soviet gulags, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich is an account of what one day, from waking to sleeping, is like to a prisoner in that prison system.
The gulags are a staple of Alexander Solzhenitsyn, himself an unwillingly participant, as the USSR did not like what he wrote. His Gulag Archipelago series is non-fiction narrative of the atrocities that took place in the gulags. But One Day is a more intimate look, through the eyes of Ivan Denisovich, a man imprisoned because he escaped from the Nazis during WW II, and so was suspected of being a spy for them.
The book is dark, and I got a feeling of hopelessness, as Ivan can't allow himself to even think of getting out one day...it would drive him crazy. So he thinks only about surviving one day...no... one hour at a time. How to get some extra food...how to get a couple of more minutes of sleep...how to be out of the freezing weather for a couple of extra minutes---this is what occupies Ivan Denisovich's mind and existence.
Solzhenitsyn does a masterful job of keeping that tension, of hour by hour living, and yet, I always felt that part of the work Ivan did was to keep himself from thinking of the outside. Those thoughts would come unbidden, and he would have to try to keep them away, so as not to succumb to abject sorrow.
One of things that stood out to me was that our freedoms are on a fine line. We cannot let government decide what we can read and write. We can't give in to the fear that may shackle our minds, in the hope that we may be only a slight bit safer. Reading One Day, you realize we have come perilously close to many of the abuses of the USSR system.
And so, however grim this book may be, it also re-ignites the hope for freedom, the wish that we may remain free to read and write what we wish, without government censorship. And that these types of political prisons, however we may feel they keep us safer, ultimately lead to abuses and the killing of the freedoms we strive for.
The gulags are a staple of Alexander Solzhenitsyn, himself an unwillingly participant, as the USSR did not like what he wrote. His Gulag Archipelago series is non-fiction narrative of the atrocities that took place in the gulags. But One Day is a more intimate look, through the eyes of Ivan Denisovich, a man imprisoned because he escaped from the Nazis during WW II, and so was suspected of being a spy for them.
The book is dark, and I got a feeling of hopelessness, as Ivan can't allow himself to even think of getting out one day...it would drive him crazy. So he thinks only about surviving one day...no... one hour at a time. How to get some extra food...how to get a couple of more minutes of sleep...how to be out of the freezing weather for a couple of extra minutes---this is what occupies Ivan Denisovich's mind and existence.
Solzhenitsyn does a masterful job of keeping that tension, of hour by hour living, and yet, I always felt that part of the work Ivan did was to keep himself from thinking of the outside. Those thoughts would come unbidden, and he would have to try to keep them away, so as not to succumb to abject sorrow.
One of things that stood out to me was that our freedoms are on a fine line. We cannot let government decide what we can read and write. We can't give in to the fear that may shackle our minds, in the hope that we may be only a slight bit safer. Reading One Day, you realize we have come perilously close to many of the abuses of the USSR system.
And so, however grim this book may be, it also re-ignites the hope for freedom, the wish that we may remain free to read and write what we wish, without government censorship. And that these types of political prisons, however we may feel they keep us safer, ultimately lead to abuses and the killing of the freedoms we strive for.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
1 Magazine
Well, now that Playboy is a every other month publication, I only have one magazine to blog about right now, National Geographic.
The August issue was not one of my all time favorites. Don't get me wrong it was good, as it always is, but nothing REALLY captured me like some issues do. The Yellowstone Supervolcano story was....sobering, and a little bit scary. Wow, the explosions in the past have been world-changing! The Art of Deception, the photo essay on creatures that disguise themselves had GREAT images. Amazing the adaptations animals evolve. And the article on Venice made me want to go, but also made me sad, as the Venetians are being pushed out, and the city becomes one big tourist trap.
Good issue, and as always, I learn so much from the magazine!
The August issue was not one of my all time favorites. Don't get me wrong it was good, as it always is, but nothing REALLY captured me like some issues do. The Yellowstone Supervolcano story was....sobering, and a little bit scary. Wow, the explosions in the past have been world-changing! The Art of Deception, the photo essay on creatures that disguise themselves had GREAT images. Amazing the adaptations animals evolve. And the article on Venice made me want to go, but also made me sad, as the Venetians are being pushed out, and the city becomes one big tourist trap.
Good issue, and as always, I learn so much from the magazine!
Movie-The Devil's Advocate
OK, so Keanu Reeves was ALMOST decent in this movie. He is still the worst actor EVER! Maybe Al Pacino as Satan inspired him, but Reeves is actually OK as the young defense lawyer (named Kevin Lomax) in Florida who is hired by a law firm in New York City for a special case.
What he doesn't realize is that the law firm is run by John Milton (Pacino) who is really Satan. As Milton leads John into temptation, and away from the good things in his life (like his hot wife, played by Charlize Theron), things become spookier. Meanwhile, John wins the case he was hired for, even though he knows the man is guilty as hell. But he is so proud at never losing a case, he still defends him and wins. Ahhhh...one of the seven deadly sins...Milton can use that!
The Devil's Advocate (1997) was a fairly good film, entertaining and slightly scary and slighty erotic. But the highlight is Pacino, near the end, talking about god, and the role of satan. He is compelling...I mean, he really gets you thinking about it...he is the devil, leading us all into temptation. I haven't seen Pacino this good in awhile.
As for Reeves...I wish the man could act. I mean, he does Ok here, but still rarely emotes, or does any action that is not wooden and stiff. Really, he needs to stop, or hire an acting coach or something.
What he doesn't realize is that the law firm is run by John Milton (Pacino) who is really Satan. As Milton leads John into temptation, and away from the good things in his life (like his hot wife, played by Charlize Theron), things become spookier. Meanwhile, John wins the case he was hired for, even though he knows the man is guilty as hell. But he is so proud at never losing a case, he still defends him and wins. Ahhhh...one of the seven deadly sins...Milton can use that!
The Devil's Advocate (1997) was a fairly good film, entertaining and slightly scary and slighty erotic. But the highlight is Pacino, near the end, talking about god, and the role of satan. He is compelling...I mean, he really gets you thinking about it...he is the devil, leading us all into temptation. I haven't seen Pacino this good in awhile.
As for Reeves...I wish the man could act. I mean, he does Ok here, but still rarely emotes, or does any action that is not wooden and stiff. Really, he needs to stop, or hire an acting coach or something.
TV on Netflix- Mad Men: Season 2
We just finished Mad Men: Season 2 on DVD, and are all ready to catch the new season on AMC, starting Aug. 16.
What an amazing show. First of all, who ever designs the sets, the clothing...everything about the setting feels like you are in 1963. there is a scene in one office, and on the wall were these three wood and metal flying ducks...each with the wings in a different position. I had forgotten that we had had those in MY house growing up! So authentic!
And then you get to the story lines. Don Draper, ad man par excellence,,,husband, not so much. And the mystery of Don's past, his current marital problems, the sale of Sterling Cooper to a big British firm---all this made a remarkable season: intriguing and deep, multi-layered and provocative...the writers are excellent.
And the acting---John Hamm as Draper, January Jones as his now-rebelling wive, Elizabeth Moss as Peggy Olson, independent and smarter than most of the men at Sterling Cooper, Christina Hendricks as Joan, the head of the secretarial pool---with these great performances, the writing looks even better. And the rest of the cast is equally as good. The actresses really filled out their roles in the second season, and though the early 60's was not the best times for women, the actresses portraying this time are powerful.
Mad Men is an excellent show, well deserving of all the prizes and plaudits it has won. We are looking forward to season 3!
What an amazing show. First of all, who ever designs the sets, the clothing...everything about the setting feels like you are in 1963. there is a scene in one office, and on the wall were these three wood and metal flying ducks...each with the wings in a different position. I had forgotten that we had had those in MY house growing up! So authentic!
And then you get to the story lines. Don Draper, ad man par excellence,,,husband, not so much. And the mystery of Don's past, his current marital problems, the sale of Sterling Cooper to a big British firm---all this made a remarkable season: intriguing and deep, multi-layered and provocative...the writers are excellent.
And the acting---John Hamm as Draper, January Jones as his now-rebelling wive, Elizabeth Moss as Peggy Olson, independent and smarter than most of the men at Sterling Cooper, Christina Hendricks as Joan, the head of the secretarial pool---with these great performances, the writing looks even better. And the rest of the cast is equally as good. The actresses really filled out their roles in the second season, and though the early 60's was not the best times for women, the actresses portraying this time are powerful.
Mad Men is an excellent show, well deserving of all the prizes and plaudits it has won. We are looking forward to season 3!
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Why Don't We Bowl More Often?
A Midsummer's Night's Bowling! We had a group of about 15 at Mira Mesa Lanes the other night, with 4 lanes reserved for us, and had so much fun!
We had a really nice mix of old and newer friends, and drank (bowling alley bars are a great price!!!) and ate bad for you, but good, bowling alley food. And we laughed as we made gutter balls, and cheered for each other as we bowled strikes.
It was great to see Angela and Gerardo again, and my niece and her boyfriend Max came out, and I could legally buy her a drink! Not that THAT doesn't make me feel aged! And Lorena, feeling better and looking fine, came out with boyfriend Kurt.
Newer friends Kelli (with her friend Tami who it was really nice to meet) and Vera (with friends Christine and Noni) came out and mingled with Bill and Yvette and Tandora.
We had 3 hours of fun, and I did not think it was very expensive at less than $20 each. It really made me ask myself...why don't we do this more often?
So, maybe in the winter we will have another bowling party. Hopefully this time at Kearny Mesa Bowl, so we can hit the karaoke afterwards! And maybe more friends will be able to join us as we always try to keep friendship and laughter at the forefront of our lives.
Besides, the shoes??? So rockin'!!!! LOL!
We had a really nice mix of old and newer friends, and drank (bowling alley bars are a great price!!!) and ate bad for you, but good, bowling alley food. And we laughed as we made gutter balls, and cheered for each other as we bowled strikes.
It was great to see Angela and Gerardo again, and my niece and her boyfriend Max came out, and I could legally buy her a drink! Not that THAT doesn't make me feel aged! And Lorena, feeling better and looking fine, came out with boyfriend Kurt.
Newer friends Kelli (with her friend Tami who it was really nice to meet) and Vera (with friends Christine and Noni) came out and mingled with Bill and Yvette and Tandora.
We had 3 hours of fun, and I did not think it was very expensive at less than $20 each. It really made me ask myself...why don't we do this more often?
So, maybe in the winter we will have another bowling party. Hopefully this time at Kearny Mesa Bowl, so we can hit the karaoke afterwards! And maybe more friends will be able to join us as we always try to keep friendship and laughter at the forefront of our lives.
Besides, the shoes??? So rockin'!!!! LOL!
Movie-Son of Rambow
Son of Rambow (2007) is a little hard to describe. Whenever I have tried, it comes out sounding boring, or trite, or both. And it is neither. It is funny, touching, and really fun to watch.
Maybe the best way to describe it is a coming of age story...two boys, Will, living in a strict religious house that does not allow him to watch TV or movies. Lee, the school trouble maker, and aspiring film director.
When Will inadvertently sees his first movie, First Blood, he wants to be Sly Stallone, and he and Lee start to make their movie. Their attempts are funny, and sweet, and a little malicious at times.
The actors that portray these two are really great. Lee, a bully and blowhard, really just a product of his environment, tempered by the sweet-natured Will. But as Will becomes more out in the world, he changes too, to Lee's dismay.
It is a quirky film, but very much on the good side of quirky. And it is devilishly funny. I still am not doing it justice, after 4 attempts to describe it. But maybe that is good, because sometimes original things are hard to put down in words. And Son of Rambow is original, that is a sure thing.
Try this movie--despite my poor attempts--- it is really good.
Maybe the best way to describe it is a coming of age story...two boys, Will, living in a strict religious house that does not allow him to watch TV or movies. Lee, the school trouble maker, and aspiring film director.
When Will inadvertently sees his first movie, First Blood, he wants to be Sly Stallone, and he and Lee start to make their movie. Their attempts are funny, and sweet, and a little malicious at times.
The actors that portray these two are really great. Lee, a bully and blowhard, really just a product of his environment, tempered by the sweet-natured Will. But as Will becomes more out in the world, he changes too, to Lee's dismay.
It is a quirky film, but very much on the good side of quirky. And it is devilishly funny. I still am not doing it justice, after 4 attempts to describe it. But maybe that is good, because sometimes original things are hard to put down in words. And Son of Rambow is original, that is a sure thing.
Try this movie--despite my poor attempts--- it is really good.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Movie- Mail Order Wife
Mail Order Wife (2005) is a strange little independent film. Filmed, as if it is a documentary, it has a film maker, taking on as his subject a man about to order a mail order bride. This man, Adrian, a Queens doorman (who describes himself in the mail order bride catalogue as in real estate and security) is pretty obnoxious and not very attractive, though he thinks he is a rare catch.
And he gets Lichi to come over from Burma and marry him. But he treats her like a servant, and the film maker, Andrew, starts having concerns about her well-being. When Adrian starts using Lichi in homemade porn movies, Andrew steps in, and offers her refuge in his house.
The faux documentary style works fabulous here. Even though we knew it was not a documentary, we had to double check a couple of times early on. The characters do not seem like actors reading lines at all. Later it becomes more evident that this is not a true story, but it has you guessing at times.
Andrew, for all his good will, has intentions for Lichi too. He ends up marrying her, and much to his chagrin, she turns out to be a terror--crazy wacko nut job, not the sweet little Burmese girl he had thought.
The film loses some of its innovation towards the end, and becomes too much farce. But even with that, this is an interesting little movie.
And he gets Lichi to come over from Burma and marry him. But he treats her like a servant, and the film maker, Andrew, starts having concerns about her well-being. When Adrian starts using Lichi in homemade porn movies, Andrew steps in, and offers her refuge in his house.
The faux documentary style works fabulous here. Even though we knew it was not a documentary, we had to double check a couple of times early on. The characters do not seem like actors reading lines at all. Later it becomes more evident that this is not a true story, but it has you guessing at times.
Andrew, for all his good will, has intentions for Lichi too. He ends up marrying her, and much to his chagrin, she turns out to be a terror--crazy wacko nut job, not the sweet little Burmese girl he had thought.
The film loses some of its innovation towards the end, and becomes too much farce. But even with that, this is an interesting little movie.
Book-The System of the World
I must admit, I breathed a sigh of relief as I finished the last page in this book, the end of a long trilogy, The Baroque Cycle, by Neal Stephenson.
The third book, The System of the World, was better than the first two...I finally felt like there was some payoff for going through the other two books. But still Stephenson's style, his overabundance of detail, grated on my nerves.
There was one scene, where Daniel Waterhouse, one of the main characters is in a prison yard. Stephenson tells us where he is in relation to every building around him..."to his left 100 yards away was..." and so on. When Dr. Waterhouse moves, Stephenson tells us again where the building have shifted in relation to his new position..."so now that building was 50 yards on his right.." It is too much, and did not advance the story line. It could have been told as effectively with far fewer words.
The book continues the exploits of Dr. Daniel Waterhouse, Jack Shaftoe, Eliza and Sir Issac Newton, and actually brings all the characters together, with interaction between them all, not separate story lines, like the other books. This was one reason I enjoyed it more. It just should not have taken so long to get here.
The storyline itself was interesting, the change the world saw in this period was amazing...from philosophy, religion, government, finances, science...almost everything was undergoing dramatic change. And these books chronicle much of it through a few main characters and dozens of minor ones. Again...as is Stephenson's habit...too many.
I thought I would enjoy this 2600 pages trilogy much more than I did, and a probably will not be reading Stephenson again.
The third book, The System of the World, was better than the first two...I finally felt like there was some payoff for going through the other two books. But still Stephenson's style, his overabundance of detail, grated on my nerves.
There was one scene, where Daniel Waterhouse, one of the main characters is in a prison yard. Stephenson tells us where he is in relation to every building around him..."to his left 100 yards away was..." and so on. When Dr. Waterhouse moves, Stephenson tells us again where the building have shifted in relation to his new position..."so now that building was 50 yards on his right.." It is too much, and did not advance the story line. It could have been told as effectively with far fewer words.
The book continues the exploits of Dr. Daniel Waterhouse, Jack Shaftoe, Eliza and Sir Issac Newton, and actually brings all the characters together, with interaction between them all, not separate story lines, like the other books. This was one reason I enjoyed it more. It just should not have taken so long to get here.
The storyline itself was interesting, the change the world saw in this period was amazing...from philosophy, religion, government, finances, science...almost everything was undergoing dramatic change. And these books chronicle much of it through a few main characters and dozens of minor ones. Again...as is Stephenson's habit...too many.
I thought I would enjoy this 2600 pages trilogy much more than I did, and a probably will not be reading Stephenson again.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Restaurant-Tender Greens
In one week we have found two new restaurants than now rank as favorites for us! How often does that happen?
We were looking for a place for a casual lunch on Saturday, and nothing was too appealing to us when I remembered hearing about a place at Liberty Station in Point Loma with pretty healthy food called Tender Greens (http://www.tendergreensfood.com/). So we headed down there. And we were very pleased.
It is not a full service place. You order at a counter. And it does not have a large menu. But what they do have, to do well. They are organic and/or locally sustainably grown products as much as possible. They have a nice variety of simple salads, large salads with meat (despite the name) grilled meat, soup and a few desserts.
Sharlynn and I both were craving beef and had their perfectly grilled angus flank steak on rustic bread with roasted red peppers and aioli. It came with a simple salad that was very good---Sharlynn had the baby arugula and I had the baby spinach, both good helpings. The sandwiches were excellent, with nice portions of beef, that was tender, slightly rare, and juicy. Each plate was about $10 and I had a Sam Adams to go with my lunch.
The place had a nice, casual and, dare I say it, healthy atmosphere. You could sense the food was good, and not at all processed.
This is another place we want to go back and try more. The albacore looks great, and so does the chicken. If you are Point Loma, stop by and try it, you will like it.
We were looking for a place for a casual lunch on Saturday, and nothing was too appealing to us when I remembered hearing about a place at Liberty Station in Point Loma with pretty healthy food called Tender Greens (http://www.tendergreensfood.com/). So we headed down there. And we were very pleased.
It is not a full service place. You order at a counter. And it does not have a large menu. But what they do have, to do well. They are organic and/or locally sustainably grown products as much as possible. They have a nice variety of simple salads, large salads with meat (despite the name) grilled meat, soup and a few desserts.
Sharlynn and I both were craving beef and had their perfectly grilled angus flank steak on rustic bread with roasted red peppers and aioli. It came with a simple salad that was very good---Sharlynn had the baby arugula and I had the baby spinach, both good helpings. The sandwiches were excellent, with nice portions of beef, that was tender, slightly rare, and juicy. Each plate was about $10 and I had a Sam Adams to go with my lunch.
The place had a nice, casual and, dare I say it, healthy atmosphere. You could sense the food was good, and not at all processed.
This is another place we want to go back and try more. The albacore looks great, and so does the chicken. If you are Point Loma, stop by and try it, you will like it.
Movie-12
12 was nominated for an Oscar as best foreign film for 2007 and has just been released on DVD. It did not win.
One of my all time favorite films is 12 Angry Men with Henry Fonda. Though it is set in one room, the drama that stems from this jury, making a decision on the guilt or innocence of man has always captivated me. So I was more than intrigued to see this Russian film 12 (2007) based on 12 Angry Men, but with a Slavic twist.
12 has the same premise...a young man accused of killing his step-father. It seems to most of the jury an open and shut case. A no brainer. They all have other plans, and so are happy to get this over with, and be on their way. So they adjourn to the jury room, elect a chairman, and take a vote. But one person maintains the young man's innocence. A lone juror wants them to look more closely at the case, and take a bit more time in considering their vote.
12 shows more outside the jury room than the original did. It also lets each juror tell more about his own life and experiences. And while this can be interesting, it is also sometimes too much, and is my only knock on the film. Sometimes their stories really do not have much to do with the case and go on too long. Some of the stories are used to great effect, but we really did not need to hear from all 12 of them, I don't think.
The ending really veers from 12 Angry Men, and actually becomes a strength of this film. It takes you to a place you don't expect at all, a place that like the film, is foreign to an American mindset.
Overall 12 is a very good film. A mite too long, sometimes losing focus on the main story line, but an excellent homage to 12 Angry Men, and and very good film in and of itself.
One of my all time favorite films is 12 Angry Men with Henry Fonda. Though it is set in one room, the drama that stems from this jury, making a decision on the guilt or innocence of man has always captivated me. So I was more than intrigued to see this Russian film 12 (2007) based on 12 Angry Men, but with a Slavic twist.
12 has the same premise...a young man accused of killing his step-father. It seems to most of the jury an open and shut case. A no brainer. They all have other plans, and so are happy to get this over with, and be on their way. So they adjourn to the jury room, elect a chairman, and take a vote. But one person maintains the young man's innocence. A lone juror wants them to look more closely at the case, and take a bit more time in considering their vote.
12 shows more outside the jury room than the original did. It also lets each juror tell more about his own life and experiences. And while this can be interesting, it is also sometimes too much, and is my only knock on the film. Sometimes their stories really do not have much to do with the case and go on too long. Some of the stories are used to great effect, but we really did not need to hear from all 12 of them, I don't think.
The ending really veers from 12 Angry Men, and actually becomes a strength of this film. It takes you to a place you don't expect at all, a place that like the film, is foreign to an American mindset.
Overall 12 is a very good film. A mite too long, sometimes losing focus on the main story line, but an excellent homage to 12 Angry Men, and and very good film in and of itself.
Restaurant- Cucina Urbana
We have a new favorite restaurant in San Diego!
For our anniversary (23rd) dinner we tried Cucina Urbana (http://www.sdurbankitchen.com/cucina-urbana.html), and all I can say is WOW! Actually, I have a lot more to say, but that is my short reaction to this new place, that opened recently, taking the place of the upscale Laurel restaurant.
First a little back story. In this economy, the owners of Laurel (though it was a highly rated and reviewed place) knew they could not sustain the place. So, while they still could, they decided to change it out to make it more economically viable. They have no entree over $20 bucks. They have a wine shop, with wines at retail, and a $7 corkage fee if you drink it there. It is more casual, with a neighborhood feel and a bar that has really new a refreshing drinks. The menu is California-Italian bistro, and we want to go back and try more! Because EVERYTHING we had was fantastic!
So, we started with Sharlynn selecting the wine. She went with a more expensive bottle, but one that was really nice, Primo I think it was, at $27. Remember that when it gets to our total bill. I also had a cocktail, the rosebud at the suggestion of our very nice waiter. It is vodka, muddled watermelon and a rosemary sprig, and de'lish!
I had heard about an appetizer here and we ordered it to start our meal. It is fried squash blossoms stuffed with herbed ricotta, served on a purple basil pesto with a light lemon dressing, and it is to die for! We were craving it the next day. Elegant, lightly fried and perfectly prepared, this type of dish is why you go out and eat. The stalks were like perfect asparagus, and the stuffed blossoms were mouth wateringly good. Not too much pesto, just a taste for each bite! It was as good as anything I have eaten. Seriously!
Our entrees? Sharlynn had the ‘duroc’ pork chop ‘milanese’, a pounded lightly breaded chop, served with marinated artichoke and a grilled, thick slice of heirloom tomato. Really tasty! Mine was a taste feast. The flavors burst in my mouth with every bite! The goat cheese + lemon ravioli with a corn puree, spring onions and pistachio oil had every taste sensation you could think of! Oh my god it was good! The sweetness of the corn puree, the tartness of the goat cheese, the brightness of the lemon...Ahhhhhhh! LOL!
I did order another cocktail during dinner, because there are so many unique ones there. It was the cucina 'rita. A mixture of tequila, amaretto, ginger syrup and white peach puree, it was great. Definitely a drink if you want to get a girl a little loopy! Because she could sock these down no problem, but it packs a punch! Nice third date drink! (Or as our waiter joked, in the '80's, a first date drink! HA!)
We went all out and split a dessert. It was a grilled peach with a blueberry panna cotta, and again, it was perfect!
The staff here were all very nice, we liked our waiter very much. We got there early, about 5:30 with no reservations and were lucky to be seated on a Tuesday night. If we were planning again, we would make reservations, because by the time we left, every table was taken. You can sit at the bar and order anything from the menu though, a nice option.
This was one of the best dinners we had had out! With the bottle of wine, 2 cocktails, an appetizer, entrees, dessert, it all came in for under $120. Not too bad for a celebratory night out! And a wonderful meal! And we could easily cut a lot off that tab!
We will go back. It is highly and enthusiastically recommended!
For our anniversary (23rd) dinner we tried Cucina Urbana (http://www.sdurbankitchen.com/cucina-urbana.html), and all I can say is WOW! Actually, I have a lot more to say, but that is my short reaction to this new place, that opened recently, taking the place of the upscale Laurel restaurant.
First a little back story. In this economy, the owners of Laurel (though it was a highly rated and reviewed place) knew they could not sustain the place. So, while they still could, they decided to change it out to make it more economically viable. They have no entree over $20 bucks. They have a wine shop, with wines at retail, and a $7 corkage fee if you drink it there. It is more casual, with a neighborhood feel and a bar that has really new a refreshing drinks. The menu is California-Italian bistro, and we want to go back and try more! Because EVERYTHING we had was fantastic!
So, we started with Sharlynn selecting the wine. She went with a more expensive bottle, but one that was really nice, Primo I think it was, at $27. Remember that when it gets to our total bill. I also had a cocktail, the rosebud at the suggestion of our very nice waiter. It is vodka, muddled watermelon and a rosemary sprig, and de'lish!
I had heard about an appetizer here and we ordered it to start our meal. It is fried squash blossoms stuffed with herbed ricotta, served on a purple basil pesto with a light lemon dressing, and it is to die for! We were craving it the next day. Elegant, lightly fried and perfectly prepared, this type of dish is why you go out and eat. The stalks were like perfect asparagus, and the stuffed blossoms were mouth wateringly good. Not too much pesto, just a taste for each bite! It was as good as anything I have eaten. Seriously!
Our entrees? Sharlynn had the ‘duroc’ pork chop ‘milanese’, a pounded lightly breaded chop, served with marinated artichoke and a grilled, thick slice of heirloom tomato. Really tasty! Mine was a taste feast. The flavors burst in my mouth with every bite! The goat cheese + lemon ravioli with a corn puree, spring onions and pistachio oil had every taste sensation you could think of! Oh my god it was good! The sweetness of the corn puree, the tartness of the goat cheese, the brightness of the lemon...Ahhhhhhh! LOL!
I did order another cocktail during dinner, because there are so many unique ones there. It was the cucina 'rita. A mixture of tequila, amaretto, ginger syrup and white peach puree, it was great. Definitely a drink if you want to get a girl a little loopy! Because she could sock these down no problem, but it packs a punch! Nice third date drink! (Or as our waiter joked, in the '80's, a first date drink! HA!)
We went all out and split a dessert. It was a grilled peach with a blueberry panna cotta, and again, it was perfect!
The staff here were all very nice, we liked our waiter very much. We got there early, about 5:30 with no reservations and were lucky to be seated on a Tuesday night. If we were planning again, we would make reservations, because by the time we left, every table was taken. You can sit at the bar and order anything from the menu though, a nice option.
This was one of the best dinners we had had out! With the bottle of wine, 2 cocktails, an appetizer, entrees, dessert, it all came in for under $120. Not too bad for a celebratory night out! And a wonderful meal! And we could easily cut a lot off that tab!
We will go back. It is highly and enthusiastically recommended!
Movie-The Trip to Bountiful
I had always heard good things about The Trip to Bountiful (1985) and knew that Geraldine Page won an Oscar for lead actress for her role in the film. But I had never seen it until now.
The description of the movie does not do it justice, and is just plain wrong in fact. "Forced to live with her rotten son Ludie (John Heard) and his wife (Carlin Glynn), Carrie Watts (Geraldine Page) decides she's had enough." Her son is not rotten at all, just trying to find some peace between his mother and his wife. His wife isn't an angel, but Miss Carrie isn't either...she is stubborn and intrusive. And Ludie has these two women living in a small apartment in Houston.
But Carrie has one goal. She feels a deep abiding need to return to Bountiful, the town she was born and raised in, before she dies. And she feels that her time to do that is running out. So she takes off.
Now this could be a cliched story. If the son was indeed rotten, if the daughter-in-law was indeed really a bad person, if Miss Carrie was too angelic...all these things may have made the story too trite. But each character was complete. Ludie just wants some peace, and is willing to find compromise between his wife and mother to find it. He loves them both, and understands them both, even if they don't understand each other.
His wife is shallow, it is true. But she is pretty and wants to ENJOY life. She wants to laugh and live---and Ludie needs that in his life...a lot.
And Miss Carrie. I have to delve into how Geraldine Page portrays her here. Miss Carrie is an old woman, who seems not to quite realize she is old, except for the feeling she is dying. She is by turns coy, and flirtatious. She remembers love and romance, and seems to long for it still. She is obstinate in her ways, and if she does not get what she wants, she throws what can be called a temper tantrum. But she has an inner light that comes from all of that, and comes from that portrayal by Page. It is a performance that seems so un-self absorbed, but you know it has to come from real artistry, from a master of the craft of acting.
This is an exceptional movie, featuring an exceptional performance by Page.
The description of the movie does not do it justice, and is just plain wrong in fact. "Forced to live with her rotten son Ludie (John Heard) and his wife (Carlin Glynn), Carrie Watts (Geraldine Page) decides she's had enough." Her son is not rotten at all, just trying to find some peace between his mother and his wife. His wife isn't an angel, but Miss Carrie isn't either...she is stubborn and intrusive. And Ludie has these two women living in a small apartment in Houston.
But Carrie has one goal. She feels a deep abiding need to return to Bountiful, the town she was born and raised in, before she dies. And she feels that her time to do that is running out. So she takes off.
Now this could be a cliched story. If the son was indeed rotten, if the daughter-in-law was indeed really a bad person, if Miss Carrie was too angelic...all these things may have made the story too trite. But each character was complete. Ludie just wants some peace, and is willing to find compromise between his wife and mother to find it. He loves them both, and understands them both, even if they don't understand each other.
His wife is shallow, it is true. But she is pretty and wants to ENJOY life. She wants to laugh and live---and Ludie needs that in his life...a lot.
And Miss Carrie. I have to delve into how Geraldine Page portrays her here. Miss Carrie is an old woman, who seems not to quite realize she is old, except for the feeling she is dying. She is by turns coy, and flirtatious. She remembers love and romance, and seems to long for it still. She is obstinate in her ways, and if she does not get what she wants, she throws what can be called a temper tantrum. But she has an inner light that comes from all of that, and comes from that portrayal by Page. It is a performance that seems so un-self absorbed, but you know it has to come from real artistry, from a master of the craft of acting.
This is an exceptional movie, featuring an exceptional performance by Page.
TV on Netflix- John Adams
And they said the mini-series was dead! Not so!
John Adams (2008), the spectacular mini-series from HBO states pure and clear that the mini-series is alive and not only well, but thriving. The 7-part historical drama, based on David McCullough's biography of our second president, brings history to life, and names and dates become secondary, as the people, the personalities, that shaped the founding of our country take the forefront.
And John Adams was in the lead for the founding of these United States, have no doubt. I have read another (fictional) book about Adams, Irving Stone's "Those Who Love." And the man was not particularly lovable, except to his wife Abigail, and even then not ALL the time. He was vain, jealous and curmudgeonly, and ill-tempered and impatient. He was also driven to make our country great, brilliant and put this country above himself.
This show, with brilliant production values shows Mr. Adams from his first ideas about breaking with Great Britain, to his dying days. It is a political tale, a tale of courage and dedication, and a tale of personal faults and amazing redeeming qualities. We hear of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin all the time, but John Adams ranks with them, or above them in the annals of the founding of our country.
Paul Giamatti is expertly cast as John Adams, and plays the role better than you can imagine anyone playing it. It is like it is created for him to play. Laura Linney, who I love, matches him step for step as his long-suffering wife Abigail, who he relies on so heavily, and yet, ill-uses so much it seems.
The supporting cast all are amazing, without exception. The relationships they show of our forefathers, show they were not gods, but men doing heroic things. These men, if they lost this endevour would have been hung as traitors to a legitmate government. The were truly revolutionaries, throwing off the yoke of a king, and they did not agree on how to do that. It was all new to them.
Amazing amazing amazing! This is how history should be portrayed.
John Adams (2008), the spectacular mini-series from HBO states pure and clear that the mini-series is alive and not only well, but thriving. The 7-part historical drama, based on David McCullough's biography of our second president, brings history to life, and names and dates become secondary, as the people, the personalities, that shaped the founding of our country take the forefront.
And John Adams was in the lead for the founding of these United States, have no doubt. I have read another (fictional) book about Adams, Irving Stone's "Those Who Love." And the man was not particularly lovable, except to his wife Abigail, and even then not ALL the time. He was vain, jealous and curmudgeonly, and ill-tempered and impatient. He was also driven to make our country great, brilliant and put this country above himself.
This show, with brilliant production values shows Mr. Adams from his first ideas about breaking with Great Britain, to his dying days. It is a political tale, a tale of courage and dedication, and a tale of personal faults and amazing redeeming qualities. We hear of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin all the time, but John Adams ranks with them, or above them in the annals of the founding of our country.
Paul Giamatti is expertly cast as John Adams, and plays the role better than you can imagine anyone playing it. It is like it is created for him to play. Laura Linney, who I love, matches him step for step as his long-suffering wife Abigail, who he relies on so heavily, and yet, ill-uses so much it seems.
The supporting cast all are amazing, without exception. The relationships they show of our forefathers, show they were not gods, but men doing heroic things. These men, if they lost this endevour would have been hung as traitors to a legitmate government. The were truly revolutionaries, throwing off the yoke of a king, and they did not agree on how to do that. It was all new to them.
Amazing amazing amazing! This is how history should be portrayed.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Play- Fiddler on the Roof
OK will admit a bit of prejudice here. From my childhood I have listened to the soundtrack of Fiddler on the Roof, of have been entranced. So I knew I would love the live performance at the Civic Theater, with Topol in the role of Tevya, his farewell tour. But I did not know I would love it as much as I did, and as did everyone else in the audience.
Fiddler on the Roof is the story of a poor milkman in a small village of Antevka, Russia in the early 1900's. Tevya has a personal relationship with God, and talks to him frequently, often complaining a little.
"You made many many poor people, I realize of course its no shame to be poor, but its no great honor either. Now what would be so terrible if I had a small fortune?" This is the intro to the spirited song "If I Were a Rich Man," a song I love for many MANY reasons. And Topol, at 73, makes it look so easy.
But Tevya is in a time of change, a time where the traditions of his village are at odds with a changing world, and this play is about how he copes with that.
It is amazingly relevant, after so many years still so bright, funny, touching, and this production was well wrought. The dancing took my breath away, and I am not a dancing aficionado per se. I can not think of a better production of this classic but still fresh play.
We went with friends Emily and Seth. And I suspect that they were not sure that they would really enjoy it...and I heard them laughing out loud, and know they were amazed by the dancing.
Classics such as "Matchmaker," and "Sunrise, Sunset," never sounded so good. And above it all Topol. Who made Tevya so human, so much an everyman, that we could all relate to his struggles, not just the struggles to keep bread on the table and roof over his head, but the struggle to keep some beauty and poetry in his life.
It is like a fiddler on the roof...trying to survive, while still making some kind of beautiful music. This play helped all who watched it do that. It was one of those play-going experiences that I will never forget.
Fiddler on the Roof is the story of a poor milkman in a small village of Antevka, Russia in the early 1900's. Tevya has a personal relationship with God, and talks to him frequently, often complaining a little.
"You made many many poor people, I realize of course its no shame to be poor, but its no great honor either. Now what would be so terrible if I had a small fortune?" This is the intro to the spirited song "If I Were a Rich Man," a song I love for many MANY reasons. And Topol, at 73, makes it look so easy.
But Tevya is in a time of change, a time where the traditions of his village are at odds with a changing world, and this play is about how he copes with that.
It is amazingly relevant, after so many years still so bright, funny, touching, and this production was well wrought. The dancing took my breath away, and I am not a dancing aficionado per se. I can not think of a better production of this classic but still fresh play.
We went with friends Emily and Seth. And I suspect that they were not sure that they would really enjoy it...and I heard them laughing out loud, and know they were amazed by the dancing.
Classics such as "Matchmaker," and "Sunrise, Sunset," never sounded so good. And above it all Topol. Who made Tevya so human, so much an everyman, that we could all relate to his struggles, not just the struggles to keep bread on the table and roof over his head, but the struggle to keep some beauty and poetry in his life.
It is like a fiddler on the roof...trying to survive, while still making some kind of beautiful music. This play helped all who watched it do that. It was one of those play-going experiences that I will never forget.
Movie-Saving Face
The generation gap never seems so apparent as it does between generations of immigrant parents and American born children. Not only does the typical age divide come into play, but a large cultural divide as well.
That is the focus of this light-hearted drama, Saving Face (2005). Joan Chen is a widowed mother of a young female surgeon. As a widow she still lives with her parents, in Chinatown, New York, speaking almost exclusively Chinese, interacting with only Chinese and seemingly content with that.
Her daughter, Wil, on the other hand, has an apartment of her own, outside of Chinatown, and is gay. When another woman, Vivian, from the same background comes into her life, it coincides with another familial shakeup...Wil's mother is pregnant, and her father is so outraged with his own lose of face, that he throws her out, and she has to live with Wil.
So Wil has two problems, how to balance this secret relationship she has (because she has not come out) and deal with the intrusion and pregnancy of her mother.
This is a fairly light-hearted, and sometimes really funny piece, but it is a drama, and we feel the angst of Wil mostly trying to cope between the traditions of her family, and who she is. And she sees how strong those traditions are with her grandfather's reaction to her mother's pregnancy.
I really liked this movie...the two younger female leads, who played Wil and Vivian are terrific and really engaging, and Joan Chen seems never to age. The story could have been merely about Wil and Vivian, but throwing the mother's situation in there gave it an extra dimension that added a lot to the movies vitality and message. The relationship between Wil and her mother is as interesting as between Wil and Vivian. And showing the cultural and generational divide, the difficulty is overcoming both of them, is very well done.
That is the focus of this light-hearted drama, Saving Face (2005). Joan Chen is a widowed mother of a young female surgeon. As a widow she still lives with her parents, in Chinatown, New York, speaking almost exclusively Chinese, interacting with only Chinese and seemingly content with that.
Her daughter, Wil, on the other hand, has an apartment of her own, outside of Chinatown, and is gay. When another woman, Vivian, from the same background comes into her life, it coincides with another familial shakeup...Wil's mother is pregnant, and her father is so outraged with his own lose of face, that he throws her out, and she has to live with Wil.
So Wil has two problems, how to balance this secret relationship she has (because she has not come out) and deal with the intrusion and pregnancy of her mother.
This is a fairly light-hearted, and sometimes really funny piece, but it is a drama, and we feel the angst of Wil mostly trying to cope between the traditions of her family, and who she is. And she sees how strong those traditions are with her grandfather's reaction to her mother's pregnancy.
I really liked this movie...the two younger female leads, who played Wil and Vivian are terrific and really engaging, and Joan Chen seems never to age. The story could have been merely about Wil and Vivian, but throwing the mother's situation in there gave it an extra dimension that added a lot to the movies vitality and message. The relationship between Wil and her mother is as interesting as between Wil and Vivian. And showing the cultural and generational divide, the difficulty is overcoming both of them, is very well done.
Movie-The Sting
In 1973 a movie event happened...a repairing of the co-stars from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Paul Newman and Robert Redford, came to screens in The Sting.
And I don't know how movie goers received in 1973, but watching it now, it was a great pairing of two sparkling leading men. I think it was better than Butch Cassidy.
Redford plays Johnny Hooker, a small-time grifter, who wants to make it big, but has to go on the lam, because of con that marked the wrong person, one with mob connections, and the mob is after him. He ends up in Chicago, told to look up Henry Gondorf (Newman) a big-time con man, who is in forced retirement. They combine forces to get at the head of the mob chasing Hooker down, and who killed his former partner.
Watching these two in action, putting together a team for this big con, I couldn't help but think, this is the decedent of Clooney and Pitt's Ocean's 11. the timing between Redford and Newman, the subtle nods and inflections, the FUN they seem to be having in pulling this con...the two are the 70's Clooney and Pitt. In fact there are a few scenes where Redford looks so much like Pitt it is scary.
The Sting is great fun, great movie watching and a chance to see to iconic actors working together. The con was entertaining, and set up brilliantly, and the film never lets you quite see around the corner to the end game. But with the knowing nods of Redford and Newman, you are willing to follow them where they want to take you in this movie, because you know it will be a great ride.
And I don't know how movie goers received in 1973, but watching it now, it was a great pairing of two sparkling leading men. I think it was better than Butch Cassidy.
Redford plays Johnny Hooker, a small-time grifter, who wants to make it big, but has to go on the lam, because of con that marked the wrong person, one with mob connections, and the mob is after him. He ends up in Chicago, told to look up Henry Gondorf (Newman) a big-time con man, who is in forced retirement. They combine forces to get at the head of the mob chasing Hooker down, and who killed his former partner.
Watching these two in action, putting together a team for this big con, I couldn't help but think, this is the decedent of Clooney and Pitt's Ocean's 11. the timing between Redford and Newman, the subtle nods and inflections, the FUN they seem to be having in pulling this con...the two are the 70's Clooney and Pitt. In fact there are a few scenes where Redford looks so much like Pitt it is scary.
The Sting is great fun, great movie watching and a chance to see to iconic actors working together. The con was entertaining, and set up brilliantly, and the film never lets you quite see around the corner to the end game. But with the knowing nods of Redford and Newman, you are willing to follow them where they want to take you in this movie, because you know it will be a great ride.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Robots (2005) is a fun, computer animated movie, while not great, offers some nice entertainment.
Set on a world of all robots, the hero is Rodney Copperbottom, who leaves his small town to find fame and fortune in the big city. Of course he finds that all is not as he expected it to be, in fact, the great corporation he hoped to work for has now been taken over by a ruthless robot named Rachet. It is a story that we have all seen before, but put into a pretty nice animation format.
Rodney, as voiced by Ewan McGregor, finds friends in the city, and with them, decides to restore things to right, by taking down Rachet. There is good voice work expecially by Greg Kinnear as Rachet, and Robin Williams as one of Rodney's new friends. And the animation is good.
Robots is not of the quality of Wall-E, but like I said, it is fun and entertaining.
Set on a world of all robots, the hero is Rodney Copperbottom, who leaves his small town to find fame and fortune in the big city. Of course he finds that all is not as he expected it to be, in fact, the great corporation he hoped to work for has now been taken over by a ruthless robot named Rachet. It is a story that we have all seen before, but put into a pretty nice animation format.
Rodney, as voiced by Ewan McGregor, finds friends in the city, and with them, decides to restore things to right, by taking down Rachet. There is good voice work expecially by Greg Kinnear as Rachet, and Robin Williams as one of Rodney's new friends. And the animation is good.
Robots is not of the quality of Wall-E, but like I said, it is fun and entertaining.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Movie-Me and You and Everyone We Know
Me and You and Everyone We Know (2005) is a quirky film, and not always comfortable to watch in its quirkiness. While I can't say it is bad, I also can't say that it is really good either.
Miranda July wrote, directed and costars in this indie piece, a love story between two lonely people who find each other as kindred spirits. But, the question is, whether they can accept that they care about each other. July plays Christine, a performance artist, and John Hawkes plays Richard who is recently separated and has two kids.
The story lines involving the two kids, and two teenage girls in the area, are perhaps the oddest parts of the film, and the most uncomfortable, with sexual situations between adults and kids. Not that anything comes to fruition, in fact the film is pretty clear that it is a bad thing. But it is just...un-com-for-table.
The main characters of Richard and Christine are a bit squirmy too...not your usual romantic comedy fare. And while I value originality, they just felt odd to me.
Me and You and Everyone We Know is altogether a bit too odd for me to really enjoy it. Though original, I just could not really connect to the story or the characters.
Miranda July wrote, directed and costars in this indie piece, a love story between two lonely people who find each other as kindred spirits. But, the question is, whether they can accept that they care about each other. July plays Christine, a performance artist, and John Hawkes plays Richard who is recently separated and has two kids.
The story lines involving the two kids, and two teenage girls in the area, are perhaps the oddest parts of the film, and the most uncomfortable, with sexual situations between adults and kids. Not that anything comes to fruition, in fact the film is pretty clear that it is a bad thing. But it is just...un-com-for-table.
The main characters of Richard and Christine are a bit squirmy too...not your usual romantic comedy fare. And while I value originality, they just felt odd to me.
Me and You and Everyone We Know is altogether a bit too odd for me to really enjoy it. Though original, I just could not really connect to the story or the characters.
Monday, July 13, 2009
2 Magazines
As always, read my two monthly magazines, National Geographic and Playboy.
July Nat Geo was excellent! The story about Angkor and why that civilization disappeared was entrancing, with great graphics of the water systems they had there. And great photography also! It was one of those stories that I subscribe to the magazine for. Also, the Garrison Keillor piece about state fairs was great prose and again great photographs. The photo essay on devilfish---holy crap those are big animals! It really gave a sense of wonder of the creatures, diverse and splendid, we share this earth with.
July/August Playboy, because they are going bi-monthly I have heard, was quite a good one too. Ironically had a article about Billy Mays that came out right before he died. But the Alec Baldwin interview was really interesting. He is conflicted in a lot of ways, and admits it to a point. And seems very open to discussing his faults. A few months ago, Playboy finished a series of articles looking closely at the male sexual system. This month they look very closely at the female system. And it is an enlightening article. I mean, do you know why it is called the "G Spot?" But it really looks at various theories of female sexuality from a physiological view. Is there a g spot? Or is there only clitoral orgasms? What and why is there a clitoris? And, what is the clitoral system...really, what we see is only the...ahem...tip of the iceberg. There is so much we still do not understand about female sexuality, even anatomically.
As always I am entertained and learn a lot from both these publications!
July Nat Geo was excellent! The story about Angkor and why that civilization disappeared was entrancing, with great graphics of the water systems they had there. And great photography also! It was one of those stories that I subscribe to the magazine for. Also, the Garrison Keillor piece about state fairs was great prose and again great photographs. The photo essay on devilfish---holy crap those are big animals! It really gave a sense of wonder of the creatures, diverse and splendid, we share this earth with.
July/August Playboy, because they are going bi-monthly I have heard, was quite a good one too. Ironically had a article about Billy Mays that came out right before he died. But the Alec Baldwin interview was really interesting. He is conflicted in a lot of ways, and admits it to a point. And seems very open to discussing his faults. A few months ago, Playboy finished a series of articles looking closely at the male sexual system. This month they look very closely at the female system. And it is an enlightening article. I mean, do you know why it is called the "G Spot?" But it really looks at various theories of female sexuality from a physiological view. Is there a g spot? Or is there only clitoral orgasms? What and why is there a clitoris? And, what is the clitoral system...really, what we see is only the...ahem...tip of the iceberg. There is so much we still do not understand about female sexuality, even anatomically.
As always I am entertained and learn a lot from both these publications!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Movie-Bigger, Stronger, Faster
This documentary about steroid use in America turned out a little unexpected for me. I was ready from the previews to see a stronger indictment of steroid use, but what the movie turned out to be, was far more interesting.
Bigger, Stronger, Faster (2008) tells the true story of director and narrator, Chris Bell's family, where 3 brothers ALL have taken steroids, and 2 still do. Bell probes into the issues of the danger of steroids, and makes an admirable case that they are not nearly as dangerous as many other things out there; prescription drugs, cigarettes, alcohol. But he also examines the why...why do we, particularly Americans, feel the need to take these drugs. And that is where it is interesting.
He plays a clip near the end of George C. Scott as Patton. The famous speech from the movie, with him in front of the flag. He is saying that American HATE to lose. Losing is the antithesis of all that is American.
Think of that. Earlier, Bell showed his heroes growing up...Hulk Hogan, Rambo, Arnold. All winners...and of course...all steroid users. Is our identity so caught up in being the "best", at winning, that we will take anything to do that? We will undergo medical procedures and surgeries to "look" our best, and do the same to be the "best?"
Bigger, Stronger, Faster is a very personal film. Bell focuses on his family and uses their experiences to cast a wider eye on an American experience. One place he could have gone that he did not was the question of steroids making us dependent on drugs, and what implications that has. But that could be a whole other movie.
This was a very good film, better and deeper than I expected.
Bigger, Stronger, Faster (2008) tells the true story of director and narrator, Chris Bell's family, where 3 brothers ALL have taken steroids, and 2 still do. Bell probes into the issues of the danger of steroids, and makes an admirable case that they are not nearly as dangerous as many other things out there; prescription drugs, cigarettes, alcohol. But he also examines the why...why do we, particularly Americans, feel the need to take these drugs. And that is where it is interesting.
He plays a clip near the end of George C. Scott as Patton. The famous speech from the movie, with him in front of the flag. He is saying that American HATE to lose. Losing is the antithesis of all that is American.
Think of that. Earlier, Bell showed his heroes growing up...Hulk Hogan, Rambo, Arnold. All winners...and of course...all steroid users. Is our identity so caught up in being the "best", at winning, that we will take anything to do that? We will undergo medical procedures and surgeries to "look" our best, and do the same to be the "best?"
Bigger, Stronger, Faster is a very personal film. Bell focuses on his family and uses their experiences to cast a wider eye on an American experience. One place he could have gone that he did not was the question of steroids making us dependent on drugs, and what implications that has. But that could be a whole other movie.
This was a very good film, better and deeper than I expected.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Movie- Last Chance Harvey
Last Chance Harvey (2009) is certainly not a great movie. But it has two really good things going for it: Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. And boy, they are in a groove here.
the movie is a fairly mundane love story, though with a refreshing twist of two older people falling in love. But even so, its been done before. However, never with these two actors that have such a great response with one another. they are both pros, and you can feel the energy as they play off each other with great dialogue (much of it somewhat improvised).
Hoffman is a man who has given up too much for his moderate success, and Thompson is a woman who gives to others without taking care of herself. Both have almost given up on love. But he comes to London for his daughter wedding, even then an outsider, as she chooses her stepfather to give her away (and you understand her reason). And almost as fate would have it, the two run into each other more than once. And an awkward conversation turns into laughter and warmth. And that turns into affection and love.
These are really good actors, playing characters that have their faults, but are likable. And you know what? Its OK to indulge. When two such good actors do their thing so well, indulge away.
Last Chance Harvey is about never saying never, never saying its over or its too late. Life has a way of throwing you curves, bad and good. Luckily Hoffman and Thompson can hit a curve ball out of the park.
the movie is a fairly mundane love story, though with a refreshing twist of two older people falling in love. But even so, its been done before. However, never with these two actors that have such a great response with one another. they are both pros, and you can feel the energy as they play off each other with great dialogue (much of it somewhat improvised).
Hoffman is a man who has given up too much for his moderate success, and Thompson is a woman who gives to others without taking care of herself. Both have almost given up on love. But he comes to London for his daughter wedding, even then an outsider, as she chooses her stepfather to give her away (and you understand her reason). And almost as fate would have it, the two run into each other more than once. And an awkward conversation turns into laughter and warmth. And that turns into affection and love.
These are really good actors, playing characters that have their faults, but are likable. And you know what? Its OK to indulge. When two such good actors do their thing so well, indulge away.
Last Chance Harvey is about never saying never, never saying its over or its too late. Life has a way of throwing you curves, bad and good. Luckily Hoffman and Thompson can hit a curve ball out of the park.
TV on Netflix- Justice League: The New Frontier
There have been a lot of Justice League cartoons on the Cartoon Network, and I have enjoyed them. But they have mostly been G rated and have involved little else than finding the bad guy or solving the crime.
Not so with Justice League: The New Frontier (2008). This is PG 13 and has some very ambiguous morality in it, including McCarthy era Red baiting, civil rights being ignored, and the consequences of war crimes.
Set in the 1950's, a supposedly more innocent time, this well animated story shows the formation of the Justice League set against the corruption of U.S. government and military officials. All the key players for the JLA are here, with key, and intriguing roles for Batman and Wonder Woman, as well as the Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern.
Really good Justice League adventure. They need to make more like this.
Not so with Justice League: The New Frontier (2008). This is PG 13 and has some very ambiguous morality in it, including McCarthy era Red baiting, civil rights being ignored, and the consequences of war crimes.
Set in the 1950's, a supposedly more innocent time, this well animated story shows the formation of the Justice League set against the corruption of U.S. government and military officials. All the key players for the JLA are here, with key, and intriguing roles for Batman and Wonder Woman, as well as the Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern.
Really good Justice League adventure. They need to make more like this.
Movie-Grave of the Fireflies
Keep your kleenex close by. You will need them watching this heart-rending movie, Grave of the Fireflies (1988). It is an animated feature, but is not the usual science-fiction or fantasy. It is about two kids in Japan in WWII. And it is stark and sad, and beautiful and memorable, and sad again.
An air raid hits a city in Japan, the incendiary carpet bombing that would destroy whole areas. A mother does not survive and leaves her teenage son and toddler daughter to find their own way. And they try. Seita, the boy tries to take care of Setstuko, but they face an indifferent world, where even relatives care more about themselves than two orphans.
Slowly they start fading. Setsuko becomes ill, and sicker still. Seita becomes desperate, but there is nothing more he can do. We know she will die, but it breaks our heart anyway. We know he will also, and it breaks our heart again.
These characters are ones you will remember. This movie is one you will remember.
An air raid hits a city in Japan, the incendiary carpet bombing that would destroy whole areas. A mother does not survive and leaves her teenage son and toddler daughter to find their own way. And they try. Seita, the boy tries to take care of Setstuko, but they face an indifferent world, where even relatives care more about themselves than two orphans.
Slowly they start fading. Setsuko becomes ill, and sicker still. Seita becomes desperate, but there is nothing more he can do. We know she will die, but it breaks our heart anyway. We know he will also, and it breaks our heart again.
These characters are ones you will remember. This movie is one you will remember.
Movie-The International
The International (2009) was billed as a thriller, and it did have some thrilling moments. But it was more "build-up, with vague disappointment" than "thriller" to me.
Now part of this may have been to make a point. The whole concept of the movie is that it is hard to nail an international corporation (in this case a bank) for crimes, in that it is so part of the way business works. There is no specific person to take down, no specific way to stop them. So the vagueness may have been part and parcel of that idea.
But when Clive Owen, playing an Interpol agent, runs after a car with a person who he suspects has just murdered someone, and faces down the car, and it is just empty, it leaves you a little...OK, I'll say it...blue-balled! LOL! And that happened over and over in this film.
The one really amazing scene was the shoot out in the Guggenheim Museum. That was the stuff of a spy thriller. But even at the end of the film, it was a let down. There was no sense of closure or reward. I had to wonder, well then, why did they even make this?
I really like Clive Owen and co-star Naomi Watts. But both seemed out of place, or badly directed in the movie. Owen was too intense by a long shot...glaring at people he was supposed to be following discretely. And Watts just seemed to be going through her lines.
The International had a few good moments, but it was mostly frustrating, as it built up tension, but never gave a pay off for that build up. I had to take a cold shower after watching it.
Now part of this may have been to make a point. The whole concept of the movie is that it is hard to nail an international corporation (in this case a bank) for crimes, in that it is so part of the way business works. There is no specific person to take down, no specific way to stop them. So the vagueness may have been part and parcel of that idea.
But when Clive Owen, playing an Interpol agent, runs after a car with a person who he suspects has just murdered someone, and faces down the car, and it is just empty, it leaves you a little...OK, I'll say it...blue-balled! LOL! And that happened over and over in this film.
The one really amazing scene was the shoot out in the Guggenheim Museum. That was the stuff of a spy thriller. But even at the end of the film, it was a let down. There was no sense of closure or reward. I had to wonder, well then, why did they even make this?
I really like Clive Owen and co-star Naomi Watts. But both seemed out of place, or badly directed in the movie. Owen was too intense by a long shot...glaring at people he was supposed to be following discretely. And Watts just seemed to be going through her lines.
The International had a few good moments, but it was mostly frustrating, as it built up tension, but never gave a pay off for that build up. I had to take a cold shower after watching it.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Movie-Waltz With Bashir
Waltz With Bashir was nominated for an Oscar as best foreign film. It was a favorite because it has won the Golden Globe, but it did not win the Oscar.
Wow. This is an amazing movie. It is animated, but with an animation I have never seen before, and that was so evocative. It also was a documentary, that chronicled the real life experiences of the director, as he tried to find his memories as an Israeli soldier in the Lebanese War...memories that were gone, that would not emerge.
The film is so effective because memories lie somewhere in dreams, and it would have been hard to document dreams without animation. The dreams of other soldiers, now in middle age, connecting to their memories. The dreams/nightmares of war.
Waltz With Bashir (2008) is about as anti-war as you can get, yet it does not come across preachy, it simply tells the story from a soldier's viewpoint. It also shows the lack of responsibility taken for the horrors that war produces by anyone.
This film is a work of art on so many levels. It is not just great and unique animation, nor a compelling story, nor a moral viewpoint. But the synthesis of all these and more, make something that transcends all these. Waltz With Bashir is a movie that should be seen.
Wow. This is an amazing movie. It is animated, but with an animation I have never seen before, and that was so evocative. It also was a documentary, that chronicled the real life experiences of the director, as he tried to find his memories as an Israeli soldier in the Lebanese War...memories that were gone, that would not emerge.
The film is so effective because memories lie somewhere in dreams, and it would have been hard to document dreams without animation. The dreams of other soldiers, now in middle age, connecting to their memories. The dreams/nightmares of war.
Waltz With Bashir (2008) is about as anti-war as you can get, yet it does not come across preachy, it simply tells the story from a soldier's viewpoint. It also shows the lack of responsibility taken for the horrors that war produces by anyone.
This film is a work of art on so many levels. It is not just great and unique animation, nor a compelling story, nor a moral viewpoint. But the synthesis of all these and more, make something that transcends all these. Waltz With Bashir is a movie that should be seen.
Bar Nightclub- True North Tavern
It was not many years ago that North Park was a quiet, non-vibrant area of San Diego, especially after dark. You passed through it going from here to there sometimes, but you never stopped there.
That has changed in recent years, especially on and around 30th and University, with excellent restaurants (Urban Solace, The Linkery, Sea Rocket Bistro) running down into South Park. And even more recently True North Tavern (http://www.truenorthtavern.com/) has opened, a bar/nightclub just off University on 30th.
We checked out the scene on a recent Friday night, and it was a happening place. Lots of people, lots of dancing, good drinks and just a fun, party atmosphere. It is a little more casual than the Gaslamp, and that is good as far as I am concerned, and it has more reasonable drink prices...and that is REALLY good as far as I am concerned.
They do have food in the evening, but we did not have any. My bartender made excellent gin martinis...very cold, with a nice lemon twist, as I requested. But all the bartenders seemed to be filling orders nicely, and the drinks were not weak.
As the night progresses, tables and bar stools are moved and a dance floor is created. Now the music really cranks. We haven't danced in awhile, and I do not claim to be a great dancer, but we had fun, dancing quite a few times.
When we left about midnight, there was still a long line of people waiting to get in. I would definitely go back to True North. It is a fun place to get your party on outside downtown. Who woulda thought it would be North Park though?
That has changed in recent years, especially on and around 30th and University, with excellent restaurants (Urban Solace, The Linkery, Sea Rocket Bistro) running down into South Park. And even more recently True North Tavern (http://www.truenorthtavern.com/) has opened, a bar/nightclub just off University on 30th.
We checked out the scene on a recent Friday night, and it was a happening place. Lots of people, lots of dancing, good drinks and just a fun, party atmosphere. It is a little more casual than the Gaslamp, and that is good as far as I am concerned, and it has more reasonable drink prices...and that is REALLY good as far as I am concerned.
They do have food in the evening, but we did not have any. My bartender made excellent gin martinis...very cold, with a nice lemon twist, as I requested. But all the bartenders seemed to be filling orders nicely, and the drinks were not weak.
As the night progresses, tables and bar stools are moved and a dance floor is created. Now the music really cranks. We haven't danced in awhile, and I do not claim to be a great dancer, but we had fun, dancing quite a few times.
When we left about midnight, there was still a long line of people waiting to get in. I would definitely go back to True North. It is a fun place to get your party on outside downtown. Who woulda thought it would be North Park though?
Movie-Taken
This is the second movie I have seen recently dealing with the subject of the illegal sex trade industry and the kidnapping of young women for that industry. The first one, Trade, was more introspective, though it had its moments of tension.
Taken (2008) is a whole different animal, an action thriller, and in its genre, works very well. Liam Neeson is an unexpected action hero, ex-CIA, special assignment agent, Bryan. He has retired to be closer to his 17-year-old daughter, who now lives with his ex-wife and a really rich step-father. She talks him into letting her go to Europe, against his better judgement, and in an apartment in France, while he listens on the phone, she is taken.
But Bryan knows how to work this...and he does it effectively, ruthlessly and, for the audience, entertainingly. While Neeson acts an action hero, Bryan also uses his brain quite well, and this works because Neeson seems smart and seasoned, not like he just relies on brawn.
There are many twists and turns, but I was on the edge of my seat many times, not just at the car chases, but at the bluffs Bryan used to get closer to his daughter. At at the lengths he would go to, to rescue her. He would not let red tape, or former friends stop him.
Taken is a really good movie...and Neeson plays this character perfectly. He can't go to the well too much on this action hero brand, but in this movie it works perfectly.
Taken (2008) is a whole different animal, an action thriller, and in its genre, works very well. Liam Neeson is an unexpected action hero, ex-CIA, special assignment agent, Bryan. He has retired to be closer to his 17-year-old daughter, who now lives with his ex-wife and a really rich step-father. She talks him into letting her go to Europe, against his better judgement, and in an apartment in France, while he listens on the phone, she is taken.
But Bryan knows how to work this...and he does it effectively, ruthlessly and, for the audience, entertainingly. While Neeson acts an action hero, Bryan also uses his brain quite well, and this works because Neeson seems smart and seasoned, not like he just relies on brawn.
There are many twists and turns, but I was on the edge of my seat many times, not just at the car chases, but at the bluffs Bryan used to get closer to his daughter. At at the lengths he would go to, to rescue her. He would not let red tape, or former friends stop him.
Taken is a really good movie...and Neeson plays this character perfectly. He can't go to the well too much on this action hero brand, but in this movie it works perfectly.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Movie-Metropolis
OK, some of these Japanese amime films freak me out...and I mean that in a good way. Metropolis (2001) is one of them. The storyline, in a dystopian future, features corporate and political intrigue, as one party stages a coup and kills the current president, and sets humans and robots against each other, echoing racial/social tension in our current society.
This is not a kiddie cartoon folks, it is a multi-layered piece of literature, with echoes of Pinocchio and some Oedipus/Elektra complex thrown in for good measure.
And above all that, it is a cautionary tale. A story about our science getting ahead of our wisdom and morality. A morality tale of the excesses of corporate greed and human hubris, likening ourselves to gods, creators of life. It is also fantastic entertainment, with amazing animation. And it freaks me out!
This is not a kiddie cartoon folks, it is a multi-layered piece of literature, with echoes of Pinocchio and some Oedipus/Elektra complex thrown in for good measure.
And above all that, it is a cautionary tale. A story about our science getting ahead of our wisdom and morality. A morality tale of the excesses of corporate greed and human hubris, likening ourselves to gods, creators of life. It is also fantastic entertainment, with amazing animation. And it freaks me out!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Book-Here to Stay
John Hersey not only wrote fiction, but wrote many excellent pieces of non-fiction also. In this collection of his non-fiction, including his most famous work, Hiroshima, he turns in pieces about human survival. He derives his title from that theme, that as individuals, and hence as a species, we are Here to Stay.
The pieces run the gamut, from an old lady in Connecticut surviving a flooding river, to John Kennedy leading his crew to survive after his PT Boat was destroyed in WWII, to a Jew surviving Auschwitz. But Hersey steers away from sensationalism, and that works perfectly for these pieces. He gives an almost journalistic rendition of the stories, letting the horror of the situation speak for itself, never embellishing it.
For example, in Hiroshima, he follows the eyewitness account of six people who survived the blast the killed 100,000 or more. As one man was trying to rescue others near a river, he grabbed their hands, and Hersey reports, the flesh just came off. He does not talk much more about it, except that the man had to take time to recover from the shock of seeing this. But the scene is that much more powerful for lack of embellishment. As I said, Hersey lets the actions of the events speak for themselves, and he portrays these actions splendidly.
I think his type of writing has faded a bit from popularity, but it is a clear and crisp and as well written as it ever was. It is really good writing. As good as writing gets.
Here to Stay is an excellent collection of his work. He makes some short notes before each piece, and before Hiroshima he admits that this piece may challenge the idea that we are here to stay. With our ability to wipe ourselves out, it seems to have given him pause in his idea that we can make it as a species. The piece would give us all pause.
An excellent book.
The pieces run the gamut, from an old lady in Connecticut surviving a flooding river, to John Kennedy leading his crew to survive after his PT Boat was destroyed in WWII, to a Jew surviving Auschwitz. But Hersey steers away from sensationalism, and that works perfectly for these pieces. He gives an almost journalistic rendition of the stories, letting the horror of the situation speak for itself, never embellishing it.
For example, in Hiroshima, he follows the eyewitness account of six people who survived the blast the killed 100,000 or more. As one man was trying to rescue others near a river, he grabbed their hands, and Hersey reports, the flesh just came off. He does not talk much more about it, except that the man had to take time to recover from the shock of seeing this. But the scene is that much more powerful for lack of embellishment. As I said, Hersey lets the actions of the events speak for themselves, and he portrays these actions splendidly.
I think his type of writing has faded a bit from popularity, but it is a clear and crisp and as well written as it ever was. It is really good writing. As good as writing gets.
Here to Stay is an excellent collection of his work. He makes some short notes before each piece, and before Hiroshima he admits that this piece may challenge the idea that we are here to stay. With our ability to wipe ourselves out, it seems to have given him pause in his idea that we can make it as a species. The piece would give us all pause.
An excellent book.
TV on Netflix-All Creatures Great and Small, Season 4
After several seasons off the air, the last full season being 1980 and the last special being 1985, All Creatures Great and Smalll returned to series form in 1988, once again chronicling the adventures of country vet, James Herriot.
The series is welcome, in its good naturedness, and its gentle humor. Sometimes it is laugh out loud funny, as the partners in the firm deal with the sometimes eccentric Yorkshire farmers and those who are now owning more and more small animals as pets.
Most of the actors from he original series are back; except for Carol Drinkwater as James' wife, Helen. And while Lynda Bellinham is fine as Helen, Carol inhabited the role---she seemed the wife of a country vet, who grew up on a farm, and handled livestock. Alas, she is gone, and Lynda gets better in the role as the season progresses.
The season also has some fast cuts in scenes and other somewhat funky editing, that left it less smooth, and less engaging than previous seasons. But seeing old friends is sometimes a bumpy road. And many old friends of James, Siegried and Tristan appear here, including Granville Bennett who always gets James totally snookered, to the chagrin of Helen.
I really enjoy this show, and though we are now in the fifties, with anti-bitoics and artificial insemination helping the Dales farmers, the vets still have their arms up a cow's rectum or sheep's vagina so often---you realize what a hard life being a country vet was.
A funny, touching really nice show.
The series is welcome, in its good naturedness, and its gentle humor. Sometimes it is laugh out loud funny, as the partners in the firm deal with the sometimes eccentric Yorkshire farmers and those who are now owning more and more small animals as pets.
Most of the actors from he original series are back; except for Carol Drinkwater as James' wife, Helen. And while Lynda Bellinham is fine as Helen, Carol inhabited the role---she seemed the wife of a country vet, who grew up on a farm, and handled livestock. Alas, she is gone, and Lynda gets better in the role as the season progresses.
The season also has some fast cuts in scenes and other somewhat funky editing, that left it less smooth, and less engaging than previous seasons. But seeing old friends is sometimes a bumpy road. And many old friends of James, Siegried and Tristan appear here, including Granville Bennett who always gets James totally snookered, to the chagrin of Helen.
I really enjoy this show, and though we are now in the fifties, with anti-bitoics and artificial insemination helping the Dales farmers, the vets still have their arms up a cow's rectum or sheep's vagina so often---you realize what a hard life being a country vet was.
A funny, touching really nice show.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Movie-Bottle Shock
Bottle Shock (2008) is a fun movie, telling the mostly true story of Napa, coming onto the world wine stage via a blind tasting in France in 1976.
The film is listed as a drama, but it is light-hearted and often funny, and always fun. Starring Bill Pullman as the owner of Montelena Winery, and Alan Rickman who owns a small wine shop in Paris that is on the verge of failing, the film also has an excellent supporting cast. Chris Pine, Freddy Rodriguez, Rachel Taylor, Dennis Farina, Eliza Dushku and Miguel Sandoval all are great in showing their love for the grape.
If these events had not happened, the film might be considered a bit campy, but as they did, and truth being stranger than fiction, the film works because it does show an evening of the playing field between the wine snobs and those who just love wine.
Alan Rickman is especially good. He knows he is not liked. He even has a line...."You think I am an asshole because I am British, and well, you're not." And it is true, we do! But he is the catalyst that brings California wines to the forefront of the world's imagination.
Not as pretentious as Sideways, this is still a movie for those who love wine, while still being accessible for those who just want to be entertained. And you learn a little something about wine...like what the term bottle shock means!
The film is listed as a drama, but it is light-hearted and often funny, and always fun. Starring Bill Pullman as the owner of Montelena Winery, and Alan Rickman who owns a small wine shop in Paris that is on the verge of failing, the film also has an excellent supporting cast. Chris Pine, Freddy Rodriguez, Rachel Taylor, Dennis Farina, Eliza Dushku and Miguel Sandoval all are great in showing their love for the grape.
If these events had not happened, the film might be considered a bit campy, but as they did, and truth being stranger than fiction, the film works because it does show an evening of the playing field between the wine snobs and those who just love wine.
Alan Rickman is especially good. He knows he is not liked. He even has a line...."You think I am an asshole because I am British, and well, you're not." And it is true, we do! But he is the catalyst that brings California wines to the forefront of the world's imagination.
Not as pretentious as Sideways, this is still a movie for those who love wine, while still being accessible for those who just want to be entertained. And you learn a little something about wine...like what the term bottle shock means!
Movie-Bang Rajan
Oliver Stone Presents: Bang Rajan (2000) is a movie that looks really good in description. A Thai movie (kind of the Thai Braveheart)tells of a group of Thai villagers in the village of Bang Rajan, armed with machetes, hold off the invading Burmese army time after time, using guile and cunning, and of course, amazing courage.
This Thai legend was brought to the U.S. by Oliver Stone, but he really would have been better to make his own version of it, because the quality of the film left a lot to be desired. The first 20 minutes or so were almost unwatchable, and I was that close to turning it off. But I persevered, and it did get better, though only in comparison.
While the legend is compelling, this telling of it is not. I would be interested to see a better telling of this legend though.
This Thai legend was brought to the U.S. by Oliver Stone, but he really would have been better to make his own version of it, because the quality of the film left a lot to be desired. The first 20 minutes or so were almost unwatchable, and I was that close to turning it off. But I persevered, and it did get better, though only in comparison.
While the legend is compelling, this telling of it is not. I would be interested to see a better telling of this legend though.
Movie- Inside Deep Throat Pt 2
OK...a couple of other things about this movie, Inside Deep Throat. There is a lot of commentary from people like Bill Maher, Erica Jongg, Hugh Hefner and Norman Mailer and Dr. Ruth among many others. This movie provides rich context on the culture at the time, and the sexual mores of the period.
But one thing that really stood out in one of the trials where authorities tried, and succeeded in banning the film in New York. The judge hearing the trial had to take a lot of expert testimony because he had never heard of a clitoris. Didn't know such a thing existed. And the framing of the argument, morally against the film, was that it showed a woman having an orgasm without the benefit of male penetration...and this...THIS...was considered immoral! A clitoral orgasm as opposed to a vaginal orgasm was considered IMMORAL! I think that argument could only win in a world where men rule~~~~
OK...I am done now...next movie...
But one thing that really stood out in one of the trials where authorities tried, and succeeded in banning the film in New York. The judge hearing the trial had to take a lot of expert testimony because he had never heard of a clitoris. Didn't know such a thing existed. And the framing of the argument, morally against the film, was that it showed a woman having an orgasm without the benefit of male penetration...and this...THIS...was considered immoral! A clitoral orgasm as opposed to a vaginal orgasm was considered IMMORAL! I think that argument could only win in a world where men rule~~~~
OK...I am done now...next movie...
Movie-Inside Deep Throat
OK...I know many of you may not see a documentary about the 1st BIG porn movie in America as something very worthwhile. But Inside Deep Throat (2005) is more than just about the making of this movie. It is also about the people who tried to stop this movie, and that is the more insidious and concerning side of the story.
Deep Throat really was a phenomenon when it came out in 1972. Starring Linda Lovelace, it was a somewhat silly and campily funny porn movie about a woman who had a rare medical condition...her clitoris was in her throat. So the only way for her to get satisfaction was to...yes, deep throat. And that Lovelace could easily perform the feat, a feat that had not been seen on screen before, helped fuel the reaction to this movie. (You see, there WAS a plot!!! HA)
Celebrities saw it...little old ladies saw it...it was talked about on the evening news...it was talked about in mainstream newspapers and magazines. Deep Throat became the codename for Woodword and Burnsteins informant on the Watergate cover up for crying out loud! How much more mainstream can you go?
But there were a lot of people who did not want anyone to see this movie. And they tried everything they could to stop it from being on screens. They had the power of government behind them, and they used it. They were, and still are, moral crusaders, who want to stop anyone from making their own decisions about what they want to watch. They are the people who want to use their power to decide what is appropriate for a free citizen to watch, or listen to, or say, in this country. People like Charles Keating, who led the charge against Deep Throat. Called it morally destructive, and other terrible things. This same Charles Keating jailed for defrauding people out of millions of dollars in the a Savings and Loan ponzi scheme. Good source of moral leadership there Chuck!
Inside Deep Throat tells this story also. And it is compelling and concerning. It is a story, that without the advent of videotape and now DVD and computers, could have led to mass censorship in this country of freedom.
Inside Deep Throat is a worthwhile documentary.
Deep Throat really was a phenomenon when it came out in 1972. Starring Linda Lovelace, it was a somewhat silly and campily funny porn movie about a woman who had a rare medical condition...her clitoris was in her throat. So the only way for her to get satisfaction was to...yes, deep throat. And that Lovelace could easily perform the feat, a feat that had not been seen on screen before, helped fuel the reaction to this movie. (You see, there WAS a plot!!! HA)
Celebrities saw it...little old ladies saw it...it was talked about on the evening news...it was talked about in mainstream newspapers and magazines. Deep Throat became the codename for Woodword and Burnsteins informant on the Watergate cover up for crying out loud! How much more mainstream can you go?
But there were a lot of people who did not want anyone to see this movie. And they tried everything they could to stop it from being on screens. They had the power of government behind them, and they used it. They were, and still are, moral crusaders, who want to stop anyone from making their own decisions about what they want to watch. They are the people who want to use their power to decide what is appropriate for a free citizen to watch, or listen to, or say, in this country. People like Charles Keating, who led the charge against Deep Throat. Called it morally destructive, and other terrible things. This same Charles Keating jailed for defrauding people out of millions of dollars in the a Savings and Loan ponzi scheme. Good source of moral leadership there Chuck!
Inside Deep Throat tells this story also. And it is compelling and concerning. It is a story, that without the advent of videotape and now DVD and computers, could have led to mass censorship in this country of freedom.
Inside Deep Throat is a worthwhile documentary.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Movie-Winter Solstice
Starring Anthony LaPaglia, of Without A Trace fame, Winter Solstice (2005) is a quiet drama, focusing on the lives of three men, a father and two sons, one college age and one a high schooler. It is clear that he is a widower, and that there is a shared burden of the loss in the house. It is not a new loss, and though the wounds have not healed, they have at least scarred over somewhat, enough to make life livable.
But a crossroads comes, as LaPaglia must deal with the issue of his younger son's disciplinary problems, and of his older son's decision to move away. Life has already dealt him changes that he did not want or ask for, and so he is having a hard time with these changes, despite trying to be a good father. And into the equation, the thing that may help him accept change, a new neighbor. A woman oddly vivacious in a buttoned down neighborhood, and oddly out of place. And he oddly likes her.
Winter Solstice is quiet, but is not slow, in that it is a character study. As the movie moves on, we learn more of these people, like layers of an onion being peeled away, however reluctant they are to reveal themselves.
Perhaps these changes will finally allow wounds to heal. Winter Solstice tells this tale well, with fine acting and very nice story telling.
But a crossroads comes, as LaPaglia must deal with the issue of his younger son's disciplinary problems, and of his older son's decision to move away. Life has already dealt him changes that he did not want or ask for, and so he is having a hard time with these changes, despite trying to be a good father. And into the equation, the thing that may help him accept change, a new neighbor. A woman oddly vivacious in a buttoned down neighborhood, and oddly out of place. And he oddly likes her.
Winter Solstice is quiet, but is not slow, in that it is a character study. As the movie moves on, we learn more of these people, like layers of an onion being peeled away, however reluctant they are to reveal themselves.
Perhaps these changes will finally allow wounds to heal. Winter Solstice tells this tale well, with fine acting and very nice story telling.
Vegas Baby!-My Annual Mid-Life Crisis!
Ah...every June it happens! My annual mid-life crisis! A week where I take time to break down and get sad about my life ~~~~~~~ Wait! What kind of mid-life crisis is that? I learned 6 years ago to have a FUN mid-life crisis. And this year we took it on the road to Vegas Baby!
Some of our pics are posted here from the trip. And it was only a couple of nights, but we had so much fun, as usual in the city of lost wages. We stayed at the Rio, one of our favorite places...especially since they offer us free rooms!!!! OK...I keep telling everyone---ALWAYS use your players club card. The casino keeps track of how much you wager. And it adds up! Let's say you put a $20 in a slot. And along the way you win $10, and decide to keep playing. Not only do they record you as spending the initial $20, but also that additional $10. And any other incremental wins you get along the way! Second thing we do is when you eat or drink at the hotel you are staying at...charge it to your room. Even if you are paying at the end, they keep track of that too. So they see you are spending money there.
Anyway...nice big rooms, technically suites at the Rio. Friendly staff always. Easy shuttle service over to Harrah's or Paris on the Strip. Good places to eat. Very nice pool area. We had a really nice day on Thursday, lounged by the pool for a few hours, soaking in the desert sun. It was not too hot, only about 85, and the pool was cool and refreshing!
We did take the shuttle over to Harrah's to go to Carnival Court bar, recommended by our friend Eugene, and also Melissa. Great fun there. Live cover bands that dance on the bar. Stunt bartenders who twirl that bottles, free shots at different times, and a generally ribald atmosphere, that was so much fun. Sharlynn got a couple of pics with the Chippendale dancers out front, and enjoyed THAT immensely! And she also got me my new fav t-shirt that states that I "heart" lap dances...which is true! LOL!
So we gambled, we drank, we soaked up sun, swam in the pool. Did not see any shows per se, this time. Though I enjoyed the show on the casino floor one night. So many pros working...maybe because of the World Series of Poker (which we watched for a bit) was taking place. I saw five in about 20 minutes and watched one doing her thing trying to lure a guy at a slot machine. It was better than Cirque de Solei! I went down to a row of slots to see if she could complete the deal, and a very nice young lady sat down next to me, and struck up a flirtatious conversation! HA! When I decided to go to my room, she asked where I was going. "Upstairs," I said. "Am I invited?" she asks. LOL! "Uh...not tonight , but thank you," I said with a smile! Too much fun!
It was a brief trip, but a great part of my crisis, working out some deep issues. Love Vegas, always fun, always entertaining.
Some of our pics are posted here from the trip. And it was only a couple of nights, but we had so much fun, as usual in the city of lost wages. We stayed at the Rio, one of our favorite places...especially since they offer us free rooms!!!! OK...I keep telling everyone---ALWAYS use your players club card. The casino keeps track of how much you wager. And it adds up! Let's say you put a $20 in a slot. And along the way you win $10, and decide to keep playing. Not only do they record you as spending the initial $20, but also that additional $10. And any other incremental wins you get along the way! Second thing we do is when you eat or drink at the hotel you are staying at...charge it to your room. Even if you are paying at the end, they keep track of that too. So they see you are spending money there.
Anyway...nice big rooms, technically suites at the Rio. Friendly staff always. Easy shuttle service over to Harrah's or Paris on the Strip. Good places to eat. Very nice pool area. We had a really nice day on Thursday, lounged by the pool for a few hours, soaking in the desert sun. It was not too hot, only about 85, and the pool was cool and refreshing!
We did take the shuttle over to Harrah's to go to Carnival Court bar, recommended by our friend Eugene, and also Melissa. Great fun there. Live cover bands that dance on the bar. Stunt bartenders who twirl that bottles, free shots at different times, and a generally ribald atmosphere, that was so much fun. Sharlynn got a couple of pics with the Chippendale dancers out front, and enjoyed THAT immensely! And she also got me my new fav t-shirt that states that I "heart" lap dances...which is true! LOL!
So we gambled, we drank, we soaked up sun, swam in the pool. Did not see any shows per se, this time. Though I enjoyed the show on the casino floor one night. So many pros working...maybe because of the World Series of Poker (which we watched for a bit) was taking place. I saw five in about 20 minutes and watched one doing her thing trying to lure a guy at a slot machine. It was better than Cirque de Solei! I went down to a row of slots to see if she could complete the deal, and a very nice young lady sat down next to me, and struck up a flirtatious conversation! HA! When I decided to go to my room, she asked where I was going. "Upstairs," I said. "Am I invited?" she asks. LOL! "Uh...not tonight , but thank you," I said with a smile! Too much fun!
It was a brief trip, but a great part of my crisis, working out some deep issues. Love Vegas, always fun, always entertaining.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Book-The Trial by Franz Kafka
OK, I will tell the truth here. I was not looking forward to this book. But it was on my list (the all powerful list) and so I picked it up. And was immediately entranced.
The Trial by Franz Kafka is so relevant to the here and now, it is astounding that it was written about 90 years ago. It tells the story of Joseph K., who wakes up one morning to find some officials in his apartment, there to arrest him. What authority they have to arrest him is not known...what charges he is being arrested under they know not, they merely know that they have the function to arrest him, and that the court the serve does not arrest men that do not deserve to be arrested.
Wow! Sound a little familiar?
That Kafka, a Czech born and German educated writer could see this unnamed judicial, national authority is amazing. But I guess totalitarianism has no time or place.
But we also wonder if this is all in Joseph K's mind, if the world really is so difficult to handle...there are hints that his world is only of his own making, a part of Kafka's existentialism.
I prefer to read it more dystopian the existential. A time when an unnamed authority can decide whether a man is guilty or innocent, not by the merits of his case, but by the whim, or need, of that authority to have guilt or innocence pronounced.
Either way, The Trial is a book that is much more accessible than I had thought, in fact very accessible. It speaks to modern life, as it must have spoken to Kafka in his day. And it is a piece that speaks out against authority, that speaks to the individual railing against the machinery of the bureaucrat. It is a voice of the individual against the government and the corporate. It is the voice of freedom against death.
The Trial by Franz Kafka is so relevant to the here and now, it is astounding that it was written about 90 years ago. It tells the story of Joseph K., who wakes up one morning to find some officials in his apartment, there to arrest him. What authority they have to arrest him is not known...what charges he is being arrested under they know not, they merely know that they have the function to arrest him, and that the court the serve does not arrest men that do not deserve to be arrested.
Wow! Sound a little familiar?
That Kafka, a Czech born and German educated writer could see this unnamed judicial, national authority is amazing. But I guess totalitarianism has no time or place.
But we also wonder if this is all in Joseph K's mind, if the world really is so difficult to handle...there are hints that his world is only of his own making, a part of Kafka's existentialism.
I prefer to read it more dystopian the existential. A time when an unnamed authority can decide whether a man is guilty or innocent, not by the merits of his case, but by the whim, or need, of that authority to have guilt or innocence pronounced.
Either way, The Trial is a book that is much more accessible than I had thought, in fact very accessible. It speaks to modern life, as it must have spoken to Kafka in his day. And it is a piece that speaks out against authority, that speaks to the individual railing against the machinery of the bureaucrat. It is a voice of the individual against the government and the corporate. It is the voice of freedom against death.
2 Magazines
As usual, I learned so much from National Geographic. The June issue wasn't even one of my personal favorites, and yet it is a pleasure to read and learn. The Feeding the World article really gives you pause and makes you wonder if we are not on the precipice of a huge catastrophe waiting for us. And the pictures from Pink Dolphins of the Amazon were simply amazing. These creatures seem to be from a story book or fairy tale, and yet are real, though they might not be around long if attention is not given to their environment.
Playboy is always interesting. This months interview with Shia LeBeouf was interesting because he seems one of the most unguarded celebrities ever to give an interview. Yes, he has troubled times, and he freely admits to mistakes...very freely. But he also does not want to change that he is a bit...unconventional, his background is, and it has made him think in different ways. 20Q with Scott Boras was interesting. I don't like him much, and I think the super agent is bad for baseball. But he points out how baseball has gotten in its own way many times (too true) and his job is to do the best he can for his clients, not baseball. That is the commish's job. True that.The fiction "Lovely Rita" by Maile Meloy was an excellent short story. And the Playmate of the year was...gasp...a black woman! Not a big boobed blonde! Will wonders never cease. Hef does still have the ability to change!!!!
Playboy is always interesting. This months interview with Shia LeBeouf was interesting because he seems one of the most unguarded celebrities ever to give an interview. Yes, he has troubled times, and he freely admits to mistakes...very freely. But he also does not want to change that he is a bit...unconventional, his background is, and it has made him think in different ways. 20Q with Scott Boras was interesting. I don't like him much, and I think the super agent is bad for baseball. But he points out how baseball has gotten in its own way many times (too true) and his job is to do the best he can for his clients, not baseball. That is the commish's job. True that.The fiction "Lovely Rita" by Maile Meloy was an excellent short story. And the Playmate of the year was...gasp...a black woman! Not a big boobed blonde! Will wonders never cease. Hef does still have the ability to change!!!!
Movie-Nobody Knows
Nobody Knows (2005) from Japan, is an amazing, but terribly sad, movie. And it has its basis in a true story that actually happened in Japan.
We first see 12-year-old Akira with his mother meeting their new landlord. The mother assures the landlord that Akira is her only child, that the father is away on business most of the time, but Akira is very quiet. And they move in. As the movers go away, both Akira and mother open their large suitcases and out pop two younger kids! And Akira runs to the train station to get yet one more younger sibling.
Mom is not what you would call stable, she is childish...not child-like, but childish. Self-centered, she makes the kids, except for Akira stay in ALL THE TIME, for fear of losing this apartment. She comes home drunk after looking for a new boyfriend, and talks openly about all the kids have a different father. She tells them they should not even want to go to school, and in one scene tells Akira he is selfish because he wants to.
And then she disappears, for several weeks she is gone, and Akira has to keep the house together. She returns for a night, and then is gone again, vowing to return by Christmas. She is with her new boyfriend, who does not even know about these kids. And she won't tell him for fear of losing him. And cries to Akira, "Why can't I have some happiness?"
She leaves some money and is gone, and this somber 12-year-old boy, who seems not to know how to play, must take care of three younger kids.
And you see slowly whatever light he had in his eyes disappear. And the tragic effects of a 12-year-old taking care of three younger kids becomes more an more apparent. the moments of believing that their mom will come back fade even in the younger children, and they know they are left alone, as the money runs out and their gas and electricity and water is cut off.
Nobody Knows is wonderfully well made...really amazing. But in a society especially like Japan, where no one sticks their nose in anyone else's business, that these kids go unnoticed, that their plight remains unseen...is so sad.
We first see 12-year-old Akira with his mother meeting their new landlord. The mother assures the landlord that Akira is her only child, that the father is away on business most of the time, but Akira is very quiet. And they move in. As the movers go away, both Akira and mother open their large suitcases and out pop two younger kids! And Akira runs to the train station to get yet one more younger sibling.
Mom is not what you would call stable, she is childish...not child-like, but childish. Self-centered, she makes the kids, except for Akira stay in ALL THE TIME, for fear of losing this apartment. She comes home drunk after looking for a new boyfriend, and talks openly about all the kids have a different father. She tells them they should not even want to go to school, and in one scene tells Akira he is selfish because he wants to.
And then she disappears, for several weeks she is gone, and Akira has to keep the house together. She returns for a night, and then is gone again, vowing to return by Christmas. She is with her new boyfriend, who does not even know about these kids. And she won't tell him for fear of losing him. And cries to Akira, "Why can't I have some happiness?"
She leaves some money and is gone, and this somber 12-year-old boy, who seems not to know how to play, must take care of three younger kids.
And you see slowly whatever light he had in his eyes disappear. And the tragic effects of a 12-year-old taking care of three younger kids becomes more an more apparent. the moments of believing that their mom will come back fade even in the younger children, and they know they are left alone, as the money runs out and their gas and electricity and water is cut off.
Nobody Knows is wonderfully well made...really amazing. But in a society especially like Japan, where no one sticks their nose in anyone else's business, that these kids go unnoticed, that their plight remains unseen...is so sad.
Movie-The Life Before Her Eyes
This is one of those movies I wanted to like a whole lot better than I actually did. The Life Before Her Eyes (2007) has a great premise, really good leads in Uma Thurman and Evan Rachel Woods, and some really great cinematography.
But the way the story is told, with too much confusion, and not enough surety, undermines the plot and casts the job Thurman does into the crapper, because she can't act her way out of the absurdity of where the script brings her.
Woods plays the younger version of Thurman's character, Diana. Diana survived a Columbine type massacre at her high school, whose anniversary is fast approaching. Ans she is starting to become unravelled. She has a very good life now, but as we flash back into her past, we see she was a trouble maker, and a troubled youth. And we watch as the day of the massacre approaches, to see why Diana as Thurman is losing it in present time so badly.
And it is the present time story that I had trouble with. The script causes Diana to lose it so badly, we can't tell reality from figments of her imagination. And there seems to be no basis for this...this is the 15th anniversary of the massacre...is that a magic number that makes her go bonkers? Have the other anniversaries just caused her a bit of anxiety, but she is fine? Why now? Why this time does she go deep into illusion that she sees total illusions? It just does not make much sense.
There are some good aspects of the story...the past story was really good, and Evan Rachel Woods is a fine actress. I just wich the presnet story could have been more cohesive and made more sense in the story as a whole.
But the way the story is told, with too much confusion, and not enough surety, undermines the plot and casts the job Thurman does into the crapper, because she can't act her way out of the absurdity of where the script brings her.
Woods plays the younger version of Thurman's character, Diana. Diana survived a Columbine type massacre at her high school, whose anniversary is fast approaching. Ans she is starting to become unravelled. She has a very good life now, but as we flash back into her past, we see she was a trouble maker, and a troubled youth. And we watch as the day of the massacre approaches, to see why Diana as Thurman is losing it in present time so badly.
And it is the present time story that I had trouble with. The script causes Diana to lose it so badly, we can't tell reality from figments of her imagination. And there seems to be no basis for this...this is the 15th anniversary of the massacre...is that a magic number that makes her go bonkers? Have the other anniversaries just caused her a bit of anxiety, but she is fine? Why now? Why this time does she go deep into illusion that she sees total illusions? It just does not make much sense.
There are some good aspects of the story...the past story was really good, and Evan Rachel Woods is a fine actress. I just wich the presnet story could have been more cohesive and made more sense in the story as a whole.
Movie-Trade
Trade (2007) is a movie that can be tough to watch because its subject is tough, the international sex slave trade, especially the trade in kids.
But I thought this was a well made movie, starring Kevin Klein, in an unusual role for him, that of a cop off his usual beat (insurance) but trying to uncover this sex trade. There is a reason for him being involved, but I would give away too much of the story if I revealed it. He runs into another person trying to uncover the trade route, a young Mexican man, really a boy, a thug, who accidentally got his 13 year old sister caught up in this web of illicit sex.
Some of the scenes are very disturbing, and are tough to watch. But there is a sort of redemption in the end. Not complete, or very neat, but it is there.
Trade is daring to tackle this subject, and it comes out of a journalistic expose, some of which takes place right at our border. It treats the subject with gravity, and never indulges in titillation, but horror instead, as the subject warrants. It is a very good movie, that is a little bit thriller, a little bit detective, and very sad.
But I thought this was a well made movie, starring Kevin Klein, in an unusual role for him, that of a cop off his usual beat (insurance) but trying to uncover this sex trade. There is a reason for him being involved, but I would give away too much of the story if I revealed it. He runs into another person trying to uncover the trade route, a young Mexican man, really a boy, a thug, who accidentally got his 13 year old sister caught up in this web of illicit sex.
Some of the scenes are very disturbing, and are tough to watch. But there is a sort of redemption in the end. Not complete, or very neat, but it is there.
Trade is daring to tackle this subject, and it comes out of a journalistic expose, some of which takes place right at our border. It treats the subject with gravity, and never indulges in titillation, but horror instead, as the subject warrants. It is a very good movie, that is a little bit thriller, a little bit detective, and very sad.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
TV Finale-Medium
Ah...a sure sign of summer...the last TV show of the season aired this week for us.
Medium is over for the year, and went off in good style, with a very tense episode (even though I could see who the bad guy was from the get go) as Allison gets sicker from a brain tumor, but must keep dreaming to save her family.
We enjoy this show more for the personal aspects than the procedural aspects, because it really is a procedural, just with a psychic connection instead of a forensics lab. But the family and especially the marriage of Allison and Joe make the show good watching. It is one of the better marriages portrayed on TV...in its love and in its aggravation.
Medium will be back, though not on NBC. When NBC announced its new schedule, it dropped Medium and about...oh...2 seconds later, CBS picked it up and scheduled it on Fridays with Ghost Whisperer, so I plan on continuing to watch it.
Medium is over for the year, and went off in good style, with a very tense episode (even though I could see who the bad guy was from the get go) as Allison gets sicker from a brain tumor, but must keep dreaming to save her family.
We enjoy this show more for the personal aspects than the procedural aspects, because it really is a procedural, just with a psychic connection instead of a forensics lab. But the family and especially the marriage of Allison and Joe make the show good watching. It is one of the better marriages portrayed on TV...in its love and in its aggravation.
Medium will be back, though not on NBC. When NBC announced its new schedule, it dropped Medium and about...oh...2 seconds later, CBS picked it up and scheduled it on Fridays with Ghost Whisperer, so I plan on continuing to watch it.
The Andrew Awards-Best Supporting Actor
With Best Supporting Actor, all the major Andrew Awards will be given out, though I am still awaiting release of other nominated best documentaries and best foreign films (hell, I am still waiting for two of the previous years foreign films) two categories I love.
The nominess for best supporting actor are: Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight; Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder; Josh Brolin in Milk; Mike Shannon in Revolutionary Road; and Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt.
And the winner is...Oh c'mon, there is absolutely no tension or question in this category. Heath Ledger wins this by leaps and bounds, no one else is even close.
Some have whispered that maybe he won because he tragically died. No. Maybe he was nominated because of that, as films like The Dark Knight do not usually get notice from the Academy. But he won because he was amazing as the Joker. And no one can say any of the other actors were cheated. They were all good, but Ledger was perfect.
The nominess for best supporting actor are: Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight; Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder; Josh Brolin in Milk; Mike Shannon in Revolutionary Road; and Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Doubt.
And the winner is...Oh c'mon, there is absolutely no tension or question in this category. Heath Ledger wins this by leaps and bounds, no one else is even close.
Some have whispered that maybe he won because he tragically died. No. Maybe he was nominated because of that, as films like The Dark Knight do not usually get notice from the Academy. But he won because he was amazing as the Joker. And no one can say any of the other actors were cheated. They were all good, but Ledger was perfect.
Movie-Revolutionary Road
Revolutionary Road was an Oscar nominated movie with Mike Shannon nominated for Best Supporting Actor. He did not win.
This movie made me want to slit my wrists. It was as dark and bleak as they come. It certainly was not the re-team up of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet that all those Titanic lovers were hoping for. Because in Revolutionary Road (2008) the two start off in love, but through most of the movie we just see them hating each other, arguing bitterly, hurting each other, screaming at each other....well, you get the idea.
They play a young married couple in the 1950's in Connecticut, who had dreams of another life. But they get stuck in a rut, and with the repressive society of that era and with marriage being repressive (so I read into it) they lose all hopes and dreams, and end up being forced into roles they did not want. And end up screaming at each other the rest of the film.
There are a few moments of the film that I hoped would bring out some light, but these fizzled, and it resumed its dark course. I understand dramas can be bleak, but this one really puts the tort in tortuous. DiCaprio and Winslet play their roles well, but given the material, I can't say I enjoyed watching them. Some say Winslet should have won an Oscar for this rather than The Reader, to which I say modestly....BS! And I will leave it at that.
Look, if you are feeling too happy in your relationship, or you are too high on life...rent this film...it'll take care of that for you. If you are starting a relationship, maybe having her over for a homecooked meal, renting a movie...thinking, "Hey, Leo and Kate, must be romantic." Don't do it! It'll end the relationship, because after seeing this film, no one will want to be in a relationship...EVER.
Many critics loved this movie...I did not.
This movie made me want to slit my wrists. It was as dark and bleak as they come. It certainly was not the re-team up of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet that all those Titanic lovers were hoping for. Because in Revolutionary Road (2008) the two start off in love, but through most of the movie we just see them hating each other, arguing bitterly, hurting each other, screaming at each other....well, you get the idea.
They play a young married couple in the 1950's in Connecticut, who had dreams of another life. But they get stuck in a rut, and with the repressive society of that era and with marriage being repressive (so I read into it) they lose all hopes and dreams, and end up being forced into roles they did not want. And end up screaming at each other the rest of the film.
There are a few moments of the film that I hoped would bring out some light, but these fizzled, and it resumed its dark course. I understand dramas can be bleak, but this one really puts the tort in tortuous. DiCaprio and Winslet play their roles well, but given the material, I can't say I enjoyed watching them. Some say Winslet should have won an Oscar for this rather than The Reader, to which I say modestly....BS! And I will leave it at that.
Look, if you are feeling too happy in your relationship, or you are too high on life...rent this film...it'll take care of that for you. If you are starting a relationship, maybe having her over for a homecooked meal, renting a movie...thinking, "Hey, Leo and Kate, must be romantic." Don't do it! It'll end the relationship, because after seeing this film, no one will want to be in a relationship...EVER.
Many critics loved this movie...I did not.
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