tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84300676121972564412024-03-19T04:47:14.325-04:00Vix Flix Movie ReviewsV C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comBlogger148125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-90742913569811966242024-01-07T14:07:00.001-05:002024-01-07T14:07:27.446-05:00Wonka<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5CfZKeEIqwO1bDWnltDLngNC7CtTbh6ACIEtUdrt5Whz-fjxREdy6YbKmGbiYXRijhlDc39WushG_zjWjp9E6DVM9lNzjfBxmT6XL-lO6TFXxukzuMfGWWEC0e6W45akR5U0cMYB4F_MrdTuq7QEq0xNOQ_WFoldUR4rAPshblHozwMs4fIwrZ2oWMc/s407/Wonka%20Image.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="290" data-original-width="407" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5CfZKeEIqwO1bDWnltDLngNC7CtTbh6ACIEtUdrt5Whz-fjxREdy6YbKmGbiYXRijhlDc39WushG_zjWjp9E6DVM9lNzjfBxmT6XL-lO6TFXxukzuMfGWWEC0e6W45akR5U0cMYB4F_MrdTuq7QEq0xNOQ_WFoldUR4rAPshblHozwMs4fIwrZ2oWMc/w200-h143/Wonka%20Image.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">The theater was surprisingly full for a Saturday matinee of this family-friendly film. That was a happy post-pandemic reality. And it wasn’t until a point about three-quarters of the way through its nearly two-hour length that we found ourselves thinking, “This movie is too long.” But they wrapped it up in short order and we considered it to be a thoroughly enjoyable, colorful romp through Willie Wonka’s origin story.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Forget much of what you may love about Gene Wilder in 1971’s <i>Willie Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,</i> if you can. There are plenty of musical reminders from the classic original and one memorable Oompa-Loompa played by Hugh Grant. But the somewhat sinister Wonka character in Wilder’s hands is played here by a younger, more auspicious, and magical Timothee Chalamet. Still, they both have a similar devilish sparkle in their eyes and exude comparable confidence in the transformative powers of their chocolates.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Wonka begins with Willie’s arrival by ship in a whimsical city that seems like a Disney World Epcot hybrid of London and Paris (it’s a Warner Brothers film.) He almost immediately falls victim to a nefarious couple of scammers who trick him with voluminous “small print” on a contract to rent a room for the night. He then joins forces with a half dozen similarly duped victims in a laundry dungeon where they hopelessly try to work off their debts.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Local law enforcement is corrupted by an evil triumvirate of cartel-like chocolate bosses who control the availability of a huge liquid cocoa supply. Bribes to the chief of police are paid in boxes of candy by Prodnose, Slugworth, and Fickelgruber to prevent Wonka from selling his chocolate.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Wonka is thus forced into a chocolate war on two fronts, using magic and secret recipes to create diversionary confections. If that’s not enough, a “little orange man with green hair” has been stealing his candy every night. Enter Hugh Grant as an eighteen-inch-tall nemesis who Wonka’s new friend Noodle (Calah Lane) doesn’t believe is real.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So, a lot is going on at all times, with frequent breaks for cute songs and choreography. As with most heroes, setbacks are temporary, and just when all hope is lost, someone or something saves the day.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Wonka is a box full of fun, a happy escape for a couple of hours, and a visual delight for kids and adults alike. I found one Oompa-Loompa to be quite enough, and I didn’t need the lure of a golden ticket to string me along. “Blasphemy,” I’m sure Gene Wilder fans would say, but really, fifty years for a prequel seems long enough to wait. I found myself craving chocolate soon after the film began.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Wonka</i> (2023) runs 1 hour, 56 minutes and is rated PG.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" style="color: #436590; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="color: #436590; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" style="color: #436590; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="color: #436590; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-89555151413756398642023-12-09T12:59:00.004-05:002023-12-09T13:04:57.809-05:00Napoleon<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTM_E-QB6iZUFcpdiAv5v7w17Lw9dmRuuCDFUDwdbfEt9C-V-5bS5-yLpx32w-eG-JV6TuE9hrCEt3CXJAEEQeKtkviZG7yylUXiqJzdYFd3TNXtByaXsr-4sFpwLO91VSyJJYe_JIGTMx5wjVmiuraYUxigIzUO71xWxZMd2VHPsn39e_rnbfwZdmo4/s511/Napoleon%20Image.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="406" data-original-width="511" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTM_E-QB6iZUFcpdiAv5v7w17Lw9dmRuuCDFUDwdbfEt9C-V-5bS5-yLpx32w-eG-JV6TuE9hrCEt3CXJAEEQeKtkviZG7yylUXiqJzdYFd3TNXtByaXsr-4sFpwLO91VSyJJYe_JIGTMx5wjVmiuraYUxigIzUO71xWxZMd2VHPsn39e_rnbfwZdmo4/w200-h159/Napoleon%20Image.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />Add this to a list of long movies this year. Following in the wake of <i>Killers of the Flower Moon</i> at 3 hours, 26 minutes, and <i>Oppenheimer</i> at an even 3 hours, this 2 hour, 38-minute romp through the battlefields of early nineteenth-century Europe doesn’t even make your butt sore.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">If you’ve seen 2000’s <i>Gladiator</i>, directed by Ridley Scott, you know what to expect with <i>Napoleon</i>. <i>Gladiator</i>was also directed by Scott and also featured Joaquin Phoenix, though not in the lead role. Locations, costuming, and immersive cinematic violence are his strengths. The role of Commodus, which Phoenix played with creepy intensity in <i>Gladiator</i> is more or less reprised here in the person of Napoleon Bonaparte, history’s “short guy,” who set out to conquer the world. In both cases, he looks convincing in a Roman-style laurel leaf crown.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Don’t look for much about his stature. Only a couple of times was he seen standing on a box or needing assistance to mount a horse. As a side note, the actor is two inches taller than the subject at 5 foot 8 inches. And the “hand in the vest” thing is entirely absent.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The film begins with Marie Antoinette’s trip to the guillotine in 1793 France. Young General Bonaparte returns from the field and begins a string of military victories that eventually claim the lives of three million soldiers. From an initial triumph at Toulon to his eventual undoing at Waterloo, the parade of battles is on display in the film in graphic detail, though not with a total emphasis on gore. War is ugly, cold, hot, and lengthy. From Egypt to Moscow, the poor souls under Bonaparte’s command suffered from exposure to the elements, disease, and starvation while lofting him to Emperor of France. He would not settle for simply being king.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Royalty throughout Europe is displayed during Napoleon’s ascension and eventual quest for an heir to the throne. His volatile relationship with Josephine suffers from the conflict between two equally dynamic and acerbic personalities. Josephine is well-played by Vanessa Kirby.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Phoenix pulls off the portrayal of a man who may have been a highly functioning autistic savant. (It wouldn’t be surprising if Phoenix is as well.) But his ingenious military tactics were eventually no match for equally brilliant, and adaptable, generals like Britain’s Wellington. Some artistic liberty is taken in the scene between the two leaders, which is fictitious.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Depictions of infantry and cavalry charges, a military staple until technology changed warfare in World War I, are gut-wrenching to watch. The term “cannon fodder” is gruesomely illustrated. You’ll do yourself a favor if you read (or watch) “A Tale of Two Cities” by Dickens, or “Les Misérables” by Hugo to get a feel for the French Revolution and its Reign of Terror. At least look up some of the historical characters presented in the film, like Alexander, Talleyrand, Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI, and Von Blucher. Significant events and dates are labeled with subtitles, but people are not always identified.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Napoleon</i> was never boring, but left me feeling that perhaps a four-hour version would be appropriate (ninety minutes of additional footage in a Director’s Cut is promised.) And as engaging, visually stunning, and well-acted as it is, I didn’t leave saying “Wow!” More like, “Yeah, that was good.” I might recommend watching at home if you have a really large, high-quality system, otherwise, viewing in a theater is recommended.</span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Napoleon</i> (2023) runs 2 hours, 38 minutes, and is rated R.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222; font-family: -webkit-standard; line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i><i>"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. </i><i>Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222; font-family: -webkit-standard; line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); clear: both; color: #222222; font-family: -webkit-standard; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="color: #888888; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; background-color: white; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="145" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); clear: both; color: #222222; font-family: -webkit-standard; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: -webkit-standard; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); clear: both; color: #222222; font-family: -webkit-standard; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="color: #888888; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; background-color: white; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="149" /></span></a></div></div></span></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-3361809951529146772023-12-08T08:11:00.004-05:002023-12-08T14:45:40.115-05:00Genie<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5_n4XnalPWPyveqsNCy0ShQ2Ioc8Ffd4qK7EcOR1gND23Vg2HAd9kb9-P9yrB2OV7-7zmZ8hDS0L-7MZcRWeAs07SGC5Hq7hcD0aPr1YYH99ss-CV1Oc_94PAtbciclwwCTBjIO0TtNmvnXaJJwX1pCG1wiPAyX3GV8_ONaUXUQpX6zciI6-OnpGfEM/s519/Genie%20Image.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="357" data-original-width="519" height="138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5_n4XnalPWPyveqsNCy0ShQ2Ioc8Ffd4qK7EcOR1gND23Vg2HAd9kb9-P9yrB2OV7-7zmZ8hDS0L-7MZcRWeAs07SGC5Hq7hcD0aPr1YYH99ss-CV1Oc_94PAtbciclwwCTBjIO0TtNmvnXaJJwX1pCG1wiPAyX3GV8_ONaUXUQpX6zciI6-OnpGfEM/w200-h138/Genie%20Image.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">If you’re looking for some light Christmas entertainment, Richard Curtis, the writer of <i>Love Actually </i>and <i>Notting Hill</i> has something for you. Partnering with relatively inexperienced Director Sam Boyd over a heavily spiked cup of hot cocoa while binge-watching <i>Elf</i>, I imagine them saying, “If we could just get Melissa McCarthy to play the genie!”</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">And they did. And I like anything with McCarthy in the lead role, but this bordered on embarrassing, so let’s revisit the notion of “light Christmas entertainment.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Where do you find a movie rated PG these days other than Disney? That rating pretty much guarantees that you won’t have to explain things to the kids or be offended by gratuitous sex, violence, or vomit. And we’re all busy at this time of year, so ninety-three minutes of mindless fun feels just about right.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The story is worn out on two levels. First, a mysterious object, when rubbed, brings forth a genie in a flurry of second-rate visual effects with an unlimited supply of wishes to be granted. Wait, unlimited? Aren’t genies supposed to grant three wishes? Yes, that’s explained. All of the usual “I wish for,” regret and hijinks ensue.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Second, the underlying theme of a father so caught up in his work that he misses a series of his daughter’s important events has been overdone for a long time. Here we begin to get glimpses of Walter Hobbs, though a much nicer portrayal in the hands of Paapa Essiedu as Bernard, than James Caan’s mean dad in <i>Elf</i>. Bernard’s entitled wife is quick to kick him to the curb, and really not very forgiving when he devotes himself to making things right (with plenty of magic.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The <i>Elf</i> comparisons are numerous, mostly because McCarthy seems to be channeling Will Ferrell’s character to keep things silly. There are lots of visual gags for a magical being to use after an absence of two thousand years, and several verbal ones as well. “You knew Jesus, the son of God?” says Bernard. “I thought he was kidding!” replies the genie. She then proceeds to wash her hair in the toilet. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I’m not giving away anything that isn’t in the trailer. So, grab some egg nog and cookies, don’t bother hitting pause if you have to go to the bathroom, and light up the Christmas tree. It’s the most wonderful time of the year, just not always for movies.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span><i>Genie</i> (2023) runs 1 hour, 33 minutes and is rated PG.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222; line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i><i>"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. </i><i>Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); color: #222222; line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); clear: both; color: #222222; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="color: #888888; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; background-color: white; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="145" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); clear: both; color: #222222; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); clear: both; color: #222222; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="color: #888888; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; background-color: white; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="149" /></span></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-66461804400958002052023-11-06T21:32:00.002-05:002023-11-06T21:35:22.575-05:00 Killers of the Flower Moon<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8u68b53ET1Ztm-VdEqx_fho9vrbTaHkfMe8Wo-YOvtApkx7jeWDG1KEUGZ1DvxzBd7SUx4HIwJWkVdDqwDHCQQF3kGlyqS1TXSYim0-JCmzRge5_6V3z02AnEftdrmxbNTk4XsTpuCjaorwnufH2CLX39rZmvlj0HHJ-1OGRYO5X_2ZsC-V5OxuIVdWM/s1500/flower%20moon%20image.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1500" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8u68b53ET1Ztm-VdEqx_fho9vrbTaHkfMe8Wo-YOvtApkx7jeWDG1KEUGZ1DvxzBd7SUx4HIwJWkVdDqwDHCQQF3kGlyqS1TXSYim0-JCmzRge5_6V3z02AnEftdrmxbNTk4XsTpuCjaorwnufH2CLX39rZmvlj0HHJ-1OGRYO5X_2ZsC-V5OxuIVdWM/w200-h133/flower%20moon%20image.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Be aware of a couple of things if you choose to see this movie. First, it is based on actual events. Second, it is three hours and twenty-six minutes long. We’re talking 1980’s <i>Heaven’s Gate</i> length, which was only ten minutes longer in its highly criticized truncated theatrical release than you’ll spend squirming in your seat for this film.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A long movie is not a problem, particularly when the legendary Martin Scorsese produces it. Here he summoned actors Robert De Niro for the tenth time and Leonardo DiCaprio for the fifth. Together, they made everything from <i>Taxi Driver</i> to <i>The Wolf of Wall Street</i>. They are wonderful and we love to see them on screen. Also appearing are John Lithgow and the still fake-fat Brendan Fraser, both in cameos as lawyers later in the film. But I believe the real star of the film is Lily Gladstone, who plays Mollie, the wife of Ernest Burkhart, played by DiCaprio.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Martin himself appears twice in the film. Before the opening credits roll, he gives a passionate introduction to the film he’s long desired to produce, about a topic that means much to him. At the film's end, he appears as a narrator in a live radio play (pre-television) that summarizes the story we’ve just seen.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Elsewhere in the film are a number of Fox Newsreel silent-movie-era headlines about the rise of the Osage people subsequent to the discovery of oil on their land. Instant wealth brought with it instant interlopers from white society, initially as predators and eventually as murderers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Scorsese and his period-specific tactics seem gimmicky and silly, disrupting the flow of the film unnecessarily. We get that the film is set in the 1920s. Fake old footage adds nothing. It is otherwise beautifully filmed, set, and costumed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The sad undercurrent of the events within <i>Killers of the Flower Moon</i> is their proximity between our time and the “Trail of Tears” that came before them. Despite the indignity, treachery, and horrors inflicted upon Native Americans in our country during the previous hundred years, the Osage tribe found themselves willingly thrust center-stage into yet another tragedy beyond their imagination. We watch it all play out as De Niro uses his nephew DiCaprio as a thick-headed puppet in a marriage-and-murder scheme to inherit Osage wealth.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Gladstone masterfully balances trust with cautious suspicion in her soft-spoken demeanor, but eventually is taken in despite the death of her entire family. But the murders that occur at the behest of William Hale (De Niro) don’t need to be acted out in scene after scene. Their violence is gratuitous. Likewise, the investigation and eventual trial seem like an entirely second film that could be cut to shorten the movie.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite its flaws, <i>Killers of the Flower Moon</i> is worth seeing as an educational experience, though maybe at home, where you can create your own intermission. And those who prefer not to learn about or believe in episodes of American history that cause them emotional discomfort might be better off watching old John Wayne westerns.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Killers of the Flower Moon</i> (2023) runs 3 hours and 26 minutes and is rated R.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-26176413978699078282023-09-24T22:12:00.013-04:002023-09-25T04:24:13.932-04:00Barbie<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6RxkZWJrVt_bxFsL2K46nUGEdJGFBG3Jq-VopBOXu7au7ypd599ofEUDVA7f8rHeaAf0Iisw-ll2Ih222PT0gW47Dcl4PfNSwFQ2_1lVi5g1KLsuSeJ3KTPtcNYc3coUHiZCl7v7juwhF6z86DHObvqMtjyAftJfeGO5awnVfB2n895MvRMeHeAfE0Ec/s445/Barbie.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="298" data-original-width="445" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6RxkZWJrVt_bxFsL2K46nUGEdJGFBG3Jq-VopBOXu7au7ypd599ofEUDVA7f8rHeaAf0Iisw-ll2Ih222PT0gW47Dcl4PfNSwFQ2_1lVi5g1KLsuSeJ3KTPtcNYc3coUHiZCl7v7juwhF6z86DHObvqMtjyAftJfeGO5awnVfB2n895MvRMeHeAfE0Ec/w200-h134/Barbie.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Barbie is confused. Ken is insecure. But the really weird thing is that Barbie is self-aware. I’ll get back to that.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">If this film had to be made (and over a billion dollars in box office receipts indicates, yes it did) Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling were great casting decisions. They were both injection-molded in real life as Hollywood stars that seem flawless, from Ryan’s abs to Margot’s, well, everything. I dare you to find a blemish on either face.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">They’re both perfect as the original incarnations of the Mattel toys. Then came…the other ones. You know, Beach Barbie, Doctor Barbie, Astronaut Barbie, President Barbie, Mermaid Barbie…and Ken. The first point made in the film is that Ken is nothing without Barbie. He’s more or less an accessory, off to one side and at the bottom of the toy box.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I don’t think it’s spoiling anything to reveal that Barbie, after suddenly dreaming of death (to the great horror of other Barbies) enters the real world in an apparent coming-of-age quest for purpose.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There’s even a Weird Barbie, well-played by Kate McKinnon. In an appropriately weird exchange, human Barbie proclaims, “I’m not pretty anymore. I’m not ‘stereotypical Barbie pretty.” Then, narrator Helen Mirren says to the audience, “Note to the filmmakers: Margot Robbie is the wrong person to cast if you want to make this point.” There’s an uncomfortable pause as Robbie turns toward the camera and lets this sink in.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Fans are apparently in an uproar over this line that was voted the worst in the movie.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">But they get over it, and Barbie continues her self-assessment, confronting Will Ferrell, CEO of Mattel. He tries to “put Barbie back in her box”—a transparent metaphor for her literal repackaging as the unaware doll. Ken then goes rogue and takes over Barbieland, and the two confess to gawking strangers that they lack genitals. Hardy har.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Barbie’s conundrum is a less-than-nuanced layered onion of conflicting wants, needs, and perceptions. By the end of the film, the audience should be feeling confused, but Barbie confidently struts into the office of her…I’m not going to spoil that one.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">So what’s the message of this movie? Is there more than one? Perhaps therein lies its power. Like Barbie, it can be whatever you want it to be.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Barbie is too good to be real, but she wants to be real until she’s real.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Barbie can do anything. Women can do anything.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Ken is nothing without Barbie. Tear down the patriarchy!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Barbie is stressed by her own perfection, don’t expect her to do it all.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">She wants to be Everywoman, just don’t demand it of her.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">She wants to be pretty, but don’t objectify her.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Why can’t everything just be the way it used to be? Make Barbie great again.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Around and around we go, with little girls everywhere as beneficiaries or collateral damage. At some point, the Mattel greed machine determined that a superhuman role model was the way to empower and motivate generations of toy-loving impressionable children. Of course, they just wanted to make money. Did they really care about empowerment, feminism, diversity, and inclusion?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">So, best not to overthink this one. People are having tons of fun with it, and that's what going to the movies should be all about.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I never played with a Barbie, Ken, or GI Joe, so I’m fairly mystified by the phenomenon this movie became. I played with Silly Putty. Silly me. Go see Oppenheimer. There won't be a Silly Putty movie.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Barbie</i> (2023) runs 1 hour 54 minutes and is rated PG-13.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">😎</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i>"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in; text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><br /></p></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-31902564064057887552023-07-22T17:26:00.004-04:002023-09-24T09:07:17.563-04:00Oppenheimer<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Ln0KU9dWymVvUbkAm7KxizssbJ6xrmUICxZ0xBmD1l_ygwmJ6Ju2J-WGcppUQveJNiqyln1LnB9OAPCmoqG3IE4M82qoBX-SQetgRr2dwbxQyKUD4hKGoytHd6IsnLolo_2FJnYXouejbhJc9H9RCs6eeED1Q7ijrWNIQKby0DFdHsYAzPhfSUmBy30/s251/Nuclear%20Bomb.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="201" data-original-width="251" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Ln0KU9dWymVvUbkAm7KxizssbJ6xrmUICxZ0xBmD1l_ygwmJ6Ju2J-WGcppUQveJNiqyln1LnB9OAPCmoqG3IE4M82qoBX-SQetgRr2dwbxQyKUD4hKGoytHd6IsnLolo_2FJnYXouejbhJc9H9RCs6eeED1Q7ijrWNIQKby0DFdHsYAzPhfSUmBy30/w200-h160/Nuclear%20Bomb.jpeg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">The film <i>Oppenheimer</i> is a black hole into which three hours of your life will disappear, so make sure you go to a theater with comfortable seats.<br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I have a passing interest in physics, having taken a pass on physics in college. I cut so many classes it would take Schrodinger to determine if I was in the class or out – or both. (that’s a physics joke for certain friends.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If you’re a fan of <i>The</i> <i>Big Bang Theory</i>, you’re about to meet all of the names that were routinely dropped by the science nerds on the show. Of course, everyone knows Einstein, but here we get to meet Oppenheimer, Bohr, Heisenberg, Fermi, Teller, Feynman, and others.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A little terminology you’ll encounter during the film, and a side note that Alfred Nobel, of the Nobel PEACE prize fame, invented TNT. A kiloton of TNT is one thousand tons (two million pounds) of dynamite. One stick weighs less than half of a pound, so try to visualize four million sticks of dynamite! A megaton is one MILLION tons (two billion pounds.) It’s hard to even imagine what that would look like.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Christopher Nolan directs this fascinating look at the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, commonly called the father of the atomic bomb, the scientist who directed the Manhattan Project. The famous endeavor was headquartered in Los Alamos, New Mexico but divided into four compartmented, super-secret locations, one of which could have killed my mother, but I’ll get to that.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Oppenheimer is one of those dark, complicated individuals, so brilliant and sure of his expertise that he becomes something of a rock star in a very competitive scientific community. He likes to blow things up, like relationships, and that’s where the focus of the movie dwells for a long time, since we all know how it ends. BOOM.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nolan, who loves dark personalities like the one he created for Batman in <i>The Dark Night</i>, clearly enjoyed peeling away the layers of “Oppy,” as the main character came to be known.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Oppenheimer realizes the potential for a nuclear chain reaction early in the film and says to a fellow scientist, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking? A bomb!”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">That one was for the audience, along with other out-loud thoughts to help us understand. In a lecture to physics students he states that light can be both a wave and a particle, new thinking at the time. He was on the forefront of quantum theory.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Cillian Murphy, familiar from other villainous roles, is perfectly cast as the fedora-wearing leading man. Emily Blunt is solid as always, as his wife. But Matt Daman as Temporary Brigadier General Leslie Groves, was a casting mistake. He’s too likeable and has done far too much comic work to be taken seriously, though a slight hint of humor is appropriate in a few scenes when he’s trying to understand the true nature of the project he’s leading, and the possibility that it could destroy the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Robert Downey Jr. is perfect as Lewis Strauss, a Cabinet member wannabe who will stop at nothing to be appointed. We’ve certainly become familiar with bullying lawyers and Congressional committees, but it’s interesting to see it play out in the 1940s. Antisemitism, communism, McCarthyism – there were a lot of “isms” back in the good old days.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But back to my personal interest in what Oppenheimer accomplished.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">My mother seemed almost Forrest Gump-like in her encounters with historical figures. I’m grateful that she told me these stories. For a young woman to leave a sheltered suburban life in 1940 to work in Hyde Park at the University of Chicago speaks volumes about her intellect and courage. She became a secretary in the Music Department on the south end of the campus.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A scene in <i>Oppenheimer</i> takes place in an unused football stadium at the University. Mom was working about a half mile away while the first controlled nuclear fission reaction in history took place. It was one compartment of the Manhattan Project, named for the New York location of the Army component of the eventual 130,000-person endeavor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Have you heard of Fermilab in Batavia, Illinois? Well, Enrico Fermi was down the street from Mom, directing the insertion and removal of shielding lead rods from a self-sustaining prototype reactor, being careful not to set off a nuclear explosion or meltdown that would have predated Chernobyl by 46 years. They worked under cover of the name The Metallurgical Laboratory, now an historical landmark. They succeeded with their test on December 2, 1942, avoiding a blast that would have vaporized my mother and much of the south side of Chicago. A meltdown might have created an unlivable mess for thousands of years, encompassing most of the city and suburbs. If you consider the “exclusion zone” around Chernobyl with a radius of 19 miles, the Willis Tower is only eight miles away. And by the time of Chernobyl they supposedly knew what they were doing. In 1942 this was entirely new and barely understood.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><span style="font-family: arial;">When the resulting nuclear bomb was eventually detonated in New Mexico, scientists expressed a very real concern that the chain reaction they were about to unleash might ignite Earth’s atmosphere. Instead, a terrifying new weapon entered Mankind’s arsenal, causing Oppenheimer to regret his work and state, “I am become death, the destroyer of worlds.” Still, it was that or allow the Germans to develop the bomb first, use it against our allies and change history in a very detrimental way. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Or was it? The Germans had already been defeated, yet work on the bomb continued. We then dropped a bomb on Hiroshima, and a second on Nagasaki, populated and industrial areas respectively, to see what would happen. Japan was not given time to surrender after the first bomb before Hell was revisited upon the Earth three days later.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><span style="font-family: arial;">President Truman is cast in a new light here, portrayed by Gary Oldman, and the lust for power on the world stage we see on the evening news is proven not to be a modern tendency. It’s as old as mankind.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">You can go to the concession stand or the bathroom at just about any point during this film and not feel the need to catch up, but it’s definitely worth seeing.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Oppenheimer</i> (2023) runs 3 hours and is rated R.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-64699116329506740902023-04-16T21:00:00.002-04:002023-09-24T09:00:50.919-04:00M3gan<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJNlkhbs0ApSL7fOSgIc7VBjtRfqj5kSMPvCY8QEZ5L-m_-Zc_gXeHnyDWBalir3oFVzesafmQCxQCpFwIm4IP0UrncCIS8TNZwqeZAC0vr0yIt_wgkLMq2COnikx2khJ4PyB1sXBzxKA9CsWSELSjC4tvNwjhcrXyuw8-JaVzYL4QunJpK2lFyP4q/s268/M3gan.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="228" data-original-width="268" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJNlkhbs0ApSL7fOSgIc7VBjtRfqj5kSMPvCY8QEZ5L-m_-Zc_gXeHnyDWBalir3oFVzesafmQCxQCpFwIm4IP0UrncCIS8TNZwqeZAC0vr0yIt_wgkLMq2COnikx2khJ4PyB1sXBzxKA9CsWSELSjC4tvNwjhcrXyuw8-JaVzYL4QunJpK2lFyP4q/w200-h170/M3gan.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> <i><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></i>We’re always up for a Blumhouse movie. Jason Blum created Blumhouse Productions in 2000 and quickly established a reputation for a particular flavor of horror films. If you’re not sure if you’ve seen any, they include <i><span style="background-color: white;">The Purge, Split, Get Out, Us, The Invisible Man </span></i><span style="background-color: white;">and<i> The Black Phone</i></span><i>.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><span style="background-color: white;"> Get Out</span></i><span style="background-color: white;"> was a sleeper that debuted as a streaming offering, then went on to win an Academy Award for best screenplay and gross $255 million worldwide. Shot in 23 days, it was Jordan Peele’s breakout success as writer and director with an edgy social commentary in a horror wrapper.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> So, that’s a tough act to follow. We’d credit beginner’s luck, but at the end of the day, it was just good entertainment with a creative concept and great scripting. According to Jason Blum, it is the quintessential Blumhouse film: low budget, high on entertainment and social commentary, all in the hands of a director no one believed in.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> And I’d say they’ve done it again.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> Blumhouse pictures tend to be steeped in gore, but not as gratuitously as, let’s say, <i>Saw</i>. So you’ll find yourself squirming a bit and on the edge of your seat, but remember, you’re there by choice. Each Blumhouse film feels unique. They haven’t resorted to the formulaic feel of teen slasher films. You get something new with each offering.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> As with many trends in filmmaking, our fear of new or unfamiliar technological breakthroughs often give birth to new genres in the SciFi category. If you watch the news at all, you’ve been hearing a lot about Artificial Intelligence or AI. Recently, ChatGPT has dominated headlines with stories of cloned voices, computers that write sermons and college papers, and WHO KNOWS WHAT’S NEXT. Clearly the robots are about to take over. This is nothing new if you’re a fan of the Battlestar Galactica reboot. The scariest robot of all is the one you can’t tell is a robot, right?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> Well, we can certainly tell that the newly created children’s toy named M3gan is a robot. She retains enough jerky movements and dilating camera eyes to ensure us that nothing could possibly go wrong. But of course, M3gan is a learning AI, and that’s when her role as protector of her paired child owner, Cady, becomes problematic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> Longtime fans of robot science fiction recall Issac Asimov’s brilliant laws of robotics. They are: 1) a robot shall not harm a human, or by inaction allow a human to come to harm<span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">. 2) a robot shall obey any instruction given to it by a human, and 3) a robot shall avoid actions or situations that could cause it to come to harm itself.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> Well, scrap that. M3gan didn’t go to that school. With knowledge comes power, and M3gan has plenty of both. (Note: some reshooting was required to reduce this film’s rating to PG-13.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> M3gan has a creepy resemblance to actress Elizabeth Olsen, younger sister of the famous Olsen twins, Mary-Kate and Ashley. Her movements often appear human, thanks to her costume wearing human actress, twelve-year old Amie Donald.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> Eventually, M3gan goes on a rampage. How do you stop something that can outsmart and out muscle you? I guess you’ll have to see M3gan before someone tells you!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;">M3gan (2022) runs one hour 42 minutes and is rated PG-13.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-12865968385373563972022-11-22T21:58:00.004-05:002023-09-24T09:01:02.893-04:00Nope<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1XsQep4OGMMdI1EOW8erKztXv7jtf9HTeV1ZoJpWHfSMO46w3MNL6y9bmbQiSLTXyUxIyQlzpusXOcfuLQVvdEYQ8AFHpKH6vhDO9NWAE7np9V3RHciTokjHqq8BQyTAUOGWdZh6H6B_Vs7EuIZbKXDleKkubj5xb66-jPW6Xv9bwM1CiX2llJxmA/s542/Nope%20Image.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="349" data-original-width="542" height="129" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1XsQep4OGMMdI1EOW8erKztXv7jtf9HTeV1ZoJpWHfSMO46w3MNL6y9bmbQiSLTXyUxIyQlzpusXOcfuLQVvdEYQ8AFHpKH6vhDO9NWAE7np9V3RHciTokjHqq8BQyTAUOGWdZh6H6B_Vs7EuIZbKXDleKkubj5xb66-jPW6Xv9bwM1CiX2llJxmA/w200-h129/Nope%20Image.png" width="200" /></span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><br /></span></span></p></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">If you enjoyed Jordan Peele’s 2017 sleeper,</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><i>Get Out</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">, you might expect a lot from his latest effort as writer/director. But a career based on a breakthrough success is bound to disappoint, much like his reboot of</span><i>The Twilight Zone</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">, in which he attempts to fill the shoes of the legendary Rod Serling. Who does that? Serling was a brilliant writer and captivating on-screen personality. Peele is neither.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">However, we found ourselves caught up in <i>Nope</i> and gave it a “Not Bad” despite its excessive length, questionable characters and odd little sub-plots. Did Peele think he needed to bury a movie within a movie to keep it interesting? Entire plot lines could be removed. That would make the film easier to follow and shorten it up just about the right amount.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The movie opens with OJ Haywood and his father working their horses on a ranch in a generic western locale. Things get weird pretty quickly, resulting in the death of Haywood Senior. Daniel Kaluuya, who starred in <i>Get Out</i>, is the quiet older brother to Emerald, his far from quiet sister and polar opposite.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Before long, power is being drained from electric devices of all kinds. Horses are agitated and breaking free from their stalls. And OJ sees something hiding behind an unmoving cloud, an object that is “moving too fast” and behaving generally like stereotypical reports of UFOs.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In a financially motivated quest to capture a high-quality video of the object, Emerald contacts a legendary cinematographer who owns a hand-powered film camera. A local tourist trap carnival, a local fixture reminiscent of Wall Drug and other “must see” disappointments out west becomes the backdrop against which tales are told of an incident years earlier when a murderous chimpanzee went berserk on a TV show. The traumatized surviving child actor now runs the attraction.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">After a few shadowy glimpses of the flying marauder, we’re treated to some nicely executed special effects and long scenes in which we discover that not all UFOs are ships. At this point the action is more than slightly reminiscent of "War of the Worlds." <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Nope</i> is streaming free on Peacock, and for that we are grateful. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Nope</i> runs 2 hours, 10 minutes and is rated R.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-61705482004041211402022-09-04T13:20:00.010-04:002023-09-24T09:01:21.662-04:00Beast<p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTo0Y1UQXzgw5jtX_90wYJj52yCL4P5Dpdzs_b0yDDqvDXeJTfYRfAQvpf-Hn0mdfrMG3wgOCh1Awe1ZAf1vnw8MimgOMIma7WmxR8yecrLrukqP_cae7vNlWWZIAJbo4ZvJUnYyBVeqrUhY92ieYhImCN3Yc-njF0vRVmJYBjoz_uQAA3sfCyw-di/s386/Beast.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="386" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTo0Y1UQXzgw5jtX_90wYJj52yCL4P5Dpdzs_b0yDDqvDXeJTfYRfAQvpf-Hn0mdfrMG3wgOCh1Awe1ZAf1vnw8MimgOMIma7WmxR8yecrLrukqP_cae7vNlWWZIAJbo4ZvJUnYyBVeqrUhY92ieYhImCN3Yc-njF0vRVmJYBjoz_uQAA3sfCyw-di/s320/Beast.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If you’ve seen <i>Cujo</i> and <i>Jurassic Park</i>, substitute a crazed lion in the role of the scary starring animal and you’re ready for an hour and a half of “Lion King Goes Wrong.” And we’re not talking about Mufasa. Think Scar, the ugly brother with an attitude.<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;">There are three primary lines of dialogue in <i>Beast</i>. First is, “Stay here, don’t go anywhere,” which is frequently spoken by Dr. Nate Samuels to his two teenage daughters. Of course, they never listen, wandering off into clearly risky situations that multiply the dangerous plot lines.<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"> <br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;">The others are, “I’ll be right back,” and “I promise you everything will be ok,” often used together. The promise is the source of a poorly timed outburst by Samuels’ older daughter Meredith, angry over the split up of her parents and the subsequent death of her mother. Apparently, Doc Samuels made unkept promises in the past. But seriously, you’re going to bring this up while stranded in a broken-down vehicle under attack by an insane lion? <br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"> <br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;">The parallels with <i>Jurassic Park</i> become obvious once you make that connection. Early in the film, Meredith is seen wearing that film’s t-shirt. Trapped in a Jeep, falling over a cliff, a leading male actor with an injured leg, keep looking. The lion did everything but eat someone sitting in an outhouse. The fear of being eaten is a real crowd pleaser.<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"> <br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;">Of course, Doc Samuels, played by Idris Elba, has the skills needed to suture his friend’s leg wound using a readily available medical kit while under attack in the Jeep. Idris Elba’s name sounds like an anagram for something: Perhaps Ladies Rib, Bride Lisa and Ariel Bids (another Disney reference,) but that’s just silly.<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"> <br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Beast</i> is exciting, however ludicrous. Eventually lions are both hero and villain. Poachers are bad guys, and anti-poachers are bad guys to the bad guys. The message here may be, if you want to see African wildlife, Disney World’s Animal Kingdom may be a better choice.<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"> <br /></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Baltasar Kormákur, whose work includes <i>Everest</i> and <i>The Deep</i>, does a good job of maintaining action and suspense. The movie was actually filmed in South Africa over a period of ten weeks. At 6-foot-2 plus, Elba has the necessary physicality to fight a lion with a knife, wade through crocodile-infested swamps and catch a snake mid-strike, all questionable decisions.<br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> <br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Also questionable was the decision not to cast Elba’s real-life daughter in the role of Meredith, after which she didn’t speak to him for three weeks. Perfect for the angry daughter role.<br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> <br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: arial;">We saw <i>Beast</i> on National Cinema Day for a ticket price of $3.00. That seemed about right.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i>"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div></span></span></span></div><p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-71498276989049307082022-08-12T00:46:00.001-04:002023-09-24T23:08:19.567-04:00Thor: Love and Thunder<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i></i></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicjdU6xz9c2WXItboZOXJCoNS2hLOymPgTNDZX1NsO_c0LWfBHluy04wDxcS_D3Lp6QSw3-IPUmCzrfMccJMTofqBVSVrIWuqaP6nt8bYw2A1nJyeumtAiNSoHZNYoCJAHbR3l0NDWh8pVnLq-TmWzFoEDw3Pe3jq8W5uFmbwXE_Q0itLzVmxfuKgB/s376/Thors%20and%20Gorr.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="230" data-original-width="376" height="122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicjdU6xz9c2WXItboZOXJCoNS2hLOymPgTNDZX1NsO_c0LWfBHluy04wDxcS_D3Lp6QSw3-IPUmCzrfMccJMTofqBVSVrIWuqaP6nt8bYw2A1nJyeumtAiNSoHZNYoCJAHbR3l0NDWh8pVnLq-TmWzFoEDw3Pe3jq8W5uFmbwXE_Q0itLzVmxfuKgB/w200-h122/Thors%20and%20Gorr.png" width="200" /></a></i></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Thor: Love and Thunder</i> is the latest entry in Marvel’s Phase Four. Each phase contains one “Thor” title, though he has been a central figure in eight films. </span><p></p><style class="WebKit-mso-list-quirks-style">
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</style><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">If you’re having trouble keeping up, here are the movies in Phase Four, spanning the last two years. <span style="color: #333333;">At the end of this review are listed the first three phases from Marvel.* </span>Seeing them all is a commitment probably best left for superfans. I have seen most of these, but do not consider myself a diehard. There are plotlines and characters (like Doctor Strange) I don’t like.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">WandaVision</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Falcon and the Winter Soldier</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Loki</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Black Widow</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">What If...?</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Eternals</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Hawkeye</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Spider-Man: No Way Home</span> (2021)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Moon Knight</span> (2022) <o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness</span> (2022)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Ms. Marvel</span> (2022)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Thor: Love and Thunder</span> (2022) <o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">So, do you need to see all of the Thor movies to appreciate <i>Thor: Love and Thunder</i>? Probably not, but there will be elements a fan will pick up on that you won’t. The plot lines are far less ambitious than other Marvel films, but maybe they need a breather. Some of the titles have become really complicated and very dark.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Chris Hemsworth is Executive Producer and star of this latest creation. Natalie Portman is the female lead, a selection that was both controversial and disappointing to fans of the franchise. At 5 foot 3, she is a full foot shorter than Hemsworth, who is incredibly ripped. She spent ten months in a gym preparing for the role, and it only slightly bulked up her diminutive body, previously better suited for her role as a ballerina in <i>Black Swan</i>. Apparently, she got over a grudge against Marvel that caused her to state she would never be in another Marvel film. Really? Not even as The Mighty Thor? There are other actresses, possibly even lesser-known stars, who could have played this role more convincingly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">The real star of this film is Christian Bale, as Gorr the God Butcher. Intense in any role he takes on, he is the wielder of the shadow-monster summoning Necrosword, seeking vengeance for the death of his young daughter and on a mission to kill all gods in the universe.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">That brings us to Zeus, played by an old, fat Russell Crowe who at six feet tall looks short next to Hemsworth. Greek Gods are a departure from the Marvel Universe, but he’s in the post-credit trailer, so I guess he’ll be back.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333;">Gorr kidnaps all the children from New Asgard, a Norwegian tourist attraction and fishing village, just as Jane Foster shows up as Lady Thor. But don’t call her that, she prefers The Mighty Thor. She’s dying of cancer, is Thor’s old love interest, and is somehow able to pick up </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #202124;">Mjölnir</span><span style="color: #333333;">, Thor’s powerful hammer. But each time she does it weakens her as a mortal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Enter Thor’s backup weapon, StormBreaker, a battle ax that is jealous of his relationship with the hammer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">The Guardians of the Galaxy make a short appearance. That puts two of today’s leading “Chris’s” on cameral together. We’re only missing Chris Evans (Captain America) and Chris Pine (Captain Kirk.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333;">This should rightfully be characterized as a comedy. There are a ton of sight gags and one-liners. The scriptwriters threw everything at the wall, and it all stuck. Of course there are monsters and battles galore, with lots of flying through space in a Viking ship led by two giant and very vocal goats. Yeah, silly.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">But ultimately this is a love story. Gods have feelings too, no matter how they try to suppress them. But Portman and Hemsworth? Again, not sure this works.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Perhaps save this one for home viewing. It should be there soon. We were the only two people in the theater.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><i><span style="color: #333333;">Thor: Love and Thunder </span></i><span style="color: #333333;">runs 1 hour, 58 minutes and is rated PG-13.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><b><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Phase One:</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Iron Man</span> (2008)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">The Incredible Hulk</span> (2008)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Iron Man 2</span> (2010)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Thor</span> (2011)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Captain America: The First Avenger</span> (2011)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">The Avengers</span> (2012)<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><b><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Phase Two:</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Iron Man 3</span> (2013)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Thor: The Dark World</span> (2013)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Captain America: The Winter Soldier</span> (2014)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Guardians of the Galaxy</span> (2014)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Avengers: Age of Ultron</span> (2015)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Ant-Man</span> (2015)<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><b><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Phase Three:</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Captain America: Civil War</span> (2016)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Doctor Strange</span> (2016)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Guardians of the Galaxy 2</span> (2017)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Spider-Man: Homecoming</span> (2017)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Thor: Ragnarok</span> (2017)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Black Panther</span> (2017)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Avengers: Infinity War</span> (2018)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Ant-Man and the Wasp</span> (2018)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Captain Marvel</span> (2019)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Avengers: Endgame</span> (2019)<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Spider-Man: Far From Home</span> (2019)<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p class="MsoNormal" style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">*(For this list I explored the “TotalFilm” section of the GamesRadar website.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-71575802576593112412022-07-24T15:04:00.003-04:002023-09-24T23:08:32.043-04:00 Top Gun: Maverick<p><span style="font-family: arial;">If you loved 1986’s <i>Top Gun</i>, you’re also going to love <i>Top Gun: Maverick</i>. It’s essentially the same movie, albeit with a weaker soundtrack and a leading man who is 35 years older. Tom Cruise, at age 60 is aging well, here reprising his role as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. His films are a showcase for his physicality, generally running at top speed as viewed from a distance or riding a super-fast motorcycle. He’s known for doing many of his own stunts. At age 60, his hair is too consistently dark, as if he fell in a vat of blacktop sealer. Some gray highlights, befitting of a sexagenarian, would look cool. Still, he’s one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlNlQpqmt9lQ1A1Dn5NT1xkFKp4dfveoFRiniCVkx5govzSQAkjv0Pz6br7OcEOihsu-_a5ImbJgEfnSRtBQu-v2e0Mis4wBJCHRgX_X6NIMHh1BqS9pl1pWk2VdJVmHJSs8eUkmmHZ5JgA9P-h-30rn-_6hFiRoS2uJdD-lGgs8TI9SRGBZD0qnpF/s426/top%20gun%20cruise.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="272" data-original-width="426" height="127" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlNlQpqmt9lQ1A1Dn5NT1xkFKp4dfveoFRiniCVkx5govzSQAkjv0Pz6br7OcEOihsu-_a5ImbJgEfnSRtBQu-v2e0Mis4wBJCHRgX_X6NIMHh1BqS9pl1pWk2VdJVmHJSs8eUkmmHZ5JgA9P-h-30rn-_6hFiRoS2uJdD-lGgs8TI9SRGBZD0qnpF/w200-h127/top%20gun%20cruise.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Sadly, the same cannot be said of Val Kilmer. The 62-year-old fell victim to throat cancer, resulting in the loss of his voice. <i>Top Gun: Maverick</i> carved out a role for him as a debilitated admiral Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, unable to speak, and near death. A nice poster size photo of the younger man is displayed at his funeral. (Kilmer is still alive, battling his disease.)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_MkN3MggceGV2yAt2uQmir9lg0gCeRNEwnI7a1uYvz1t90dwA_mwcCEq2EEexcuGJexYscu_M20B9d83X8g9xpRAr0hGJCnoLGt5FP8_XKiDGQQixDvl7ja8cUQDRum79uY120vQ4ShFkPQITO2KZNdsfVXCfeHpD9V-cguyAHT_a_z-1vFQaQ3K/s429/top%20gun%20kilmer.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="429" height="129" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_MkN3MggceGV2yAt2uQmir9lg0gCeRNEwnI7a1uYvz1t90dwA_mwcCEq2EEexcuGJexYscu_M20B9d83X8g9xpRAr0hGJCnoLGt5FP8_XKiDGQQixDvl7ja8cUQDRum79uY120vQ4ShFkPQITO2KZNdsfVXCfeHpD9V-cguyAHT_a_z-1vFQaQ3K/w200-h129/top%20gun%20kilmer.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">But will Cruise inevitably fall victim to the aging Hollywood hunk syndrome? Those who embrace aging lengthen their careers. He’s been deceptively protective of his 5’7” stature. That makes him short by most standards. So it helps that the U.S. Air Force dropped a height requirement for pilots in 2015. He still would have qualified, but on the end of the spectrum intended for female aviators. Co-star Jennifer Connelly, Maverick’s love interest, is also 5’7” so Cruise must be standing on a box for this shot:<o:p></o:p></span><p></p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv1G1UHASka5KWMnuB9Bci9yWl_tWcJzYepggDTjy7rV4k7Jxk-88XE4neXYE4upcLmJhAhI2A_ZWOnbO4kTgylQJ9AqP1ACkwSQGkO6XQf6-OK06JNl8mWXVDu614-0z_AE9g97Ru61VrqHHv10eHcrg1AFSgXNqlE6L0-UoDlnrP7EyXt7TE3XYN/s267/top%20gun%20height.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="264" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv1G1UHASka5KWMnuB9Bci9yWl_tWcJzYepggDTjy7rV4k7Jxk-88XE4neXYE4upcLmJhAhI2A_ZWOnbO4kTgylQJ9AqP1ACkwSQGkO6XQf6-OK06JNl8mWXVDu614-0z_AE9g97Ru61VrqHHv10eHcrg1AFSgXNqlE6L0-UoDlnrP7EyXt7TE3XYN/w198-h200/top%20gun%20height.png" width="198" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Connelly, at age 51, was only 15 when <i>Top Gun</i> appeared in theaters. Here she plays Penny Benjamin, a bar tender with a 13-year-old daughter who adds little to the script, but provides a foil for our aging hero. Penny understands Maverick better than he knows himself, and is often filmed standing quietly nearby with an all-knowing smile, or repeating the phrase, “Don’t give me that look,” even when walking away.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This film, like the original, takes place mostly in the air, or in Penny’s bar, where all the nick-named flying aces banter to the point of fist fights. They’re a competitive bunch, but are about to be pitted against each other to qualify for the top six spots in a real-life mission to destroy an Iranian nuclear production facility. It’s an impossible mission, one that will require “two miracles” to pull off. Maverick, reluctantly recruited as the crew’s trainer, intends to bring his crew home alive. Jon Hamm does a good job as his commander, and of course the perennial captain Maverick has a problem with authority.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The flying and dogfighting scenes in <i>Top Gun: Maverick</i> are spectacular. The 130-minute movie seems much shorter, some of which is edge-of-your-seat footage in the cockpit of several fighter jets.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">One notion needs to be dispelled. Only missiles can travel at Mach 10, and that is a recent development. Maverick taking the “Darkstar” experimental prototype to that speed is a fantasy. The traditional about-to-pass-out G-force plot device is probably overused a bit here, but to good effect, and ejections at hypersonic speed are a death sentence.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite some moderately corny exchanges early in the film, the action and some underlying psychological baggage provide riveting intensity that make this worth seeing. You don’t need to have seen the original <i>Top Gun</i>, but I heard one movie-goer comment, “I’d like to see the first one now.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Top Gun: Maverick </i>runs 2 hours, 10 minutes and is rated PG-13.<o:p></o:p></span></p><br /><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-75825161976117253722022-06-13T22:41:00.002-04:002023-09-24T23:08:44.911-04:00Jurassic World: Dominion<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQu5I5O4F-hY08byfhQRVMXx4GzOePq2F4hTak1qy3RyPJgO1E_7NZhOeOBjxmM8MprYP6vkTJN3aqeHUzc8MrPw9h-4AAnwMAmWgJB2bipVFR7b2BOw29EnX58KYT_B4qahnR9c4gGbBUqescksq1qSnAL53GWtUl-nvgaSsn38ffQzRJJVhiOmX/s325/Jurassic%20World%20Dominion.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="213" data-original-width="325" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQu5I5O4F-hY08byfhQRVMXx4GzOePq2F4hTak1qy3RyPJgO1E_7NZhOeOBjxmM8MprYP6vkTJN3aqeHUzc8MrPw9h-4AAnwMAmWgJB2bipVFR7b2BOw29EnX58KYT_B4qahnR9c4gGbBUqescksq1qSnAL53GWtUl-nvgaSsn38ffQzRJJVhiOmX/w200-h131/Jurassic%20World%20Dominion.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">It certainly hasn’t been 65 million years since we first learned that “Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear,” but to see Laura Dern and Sam Neill (ages 55 and 74 respectively) next to the much younger Bryce Howard and Chris Pratt, it sort of feels like it may have been that long. It’s a bit shocking to realize that almost thirty years has gone by since 25-year-old Dern stuck her arm in Stegosaurus dung in that memorable scene from <i>Jurassic Park</i>. And we have aged thirty years as well. If you’re young, the entire series merits a weekend binge. But make no mistake, this is a <i>Jurassic World</i> film. The “<i>Park</i>” team is flattered to be along for the ride, and the ”<i>World</i>” team is honored to work alongside them. </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I’ve <a href="https://viclarson.blogspot.com/2021/09/jurassic-lark.html" style="color: #954f72;">written previously</a> about my crude editing of <i>Jurassic Park</i> for viewing by my young children. Today’s kids are used to atrocities on film far worse that a T-Rex eating a guy in an outhouse, but it’s time that this fantastic franchise comes to an end.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Jurassic World: Dominion</i> indeed needs to be the final sequel to the best dinosaur film ever. Some segments are more than cute referrals to the five previous films. It’s been too long for that. It feels more like stealing at this point. Perhaps a weak script is to blame, but some segments feel like re-shoots of old material. The special effects didn’t need to improve much over the years since the originals were so good, but certainly the vast increase in computing power has simplified and shortened rendering of a larger stable of extinct beasts.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Those beasts have now spread worldwide and are struggling to adapt to a variety of climates, while humans try to get used to coexisting with them. But of course, Lewis Dodgson, the deranged head of Biosyn is out to do more than just control the dinosaurs and help humanity. He’s taken a Monsanto-like approach to genetic engineering of crops that can survive plagues of escaped Cretaceous locusts. That’s the underlying story, with the heroes of <i>Jurassic Park</i> and the new stars of the <i>Jurassic World</i> series on parallel paths to expose Biosyn and also save the cloned granddaughter of John Hammond.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The meeting of the two teams of <i>Jurassic</i> stars is probably the most engaging part of the film, unless you consider the abundance of adorable baby dinosaurs. That’s Spielberg playing to the kids in this PG-13 movie, but it works for animal-loving adults too.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite a somewhat awkward start, some corny dialogue and lots of scene setting and explanations, eventually the film hits its stride and that old about-to-be-eaten dinosaur magic carries the film to Its patented conclusion. Jeff Goldblum is back as Malcolm to inject his dry humor in carefully administered doses. And B. D. Wong returns as Dr. Wu in a last-ditch effort to redeem himself and save the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Two hours would have been adequate to tell this story, but there’s never a lag in pacing, and the kids will definitely want to see this, maybe with their parents.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Jurassic World: Dominion</i> runs 2 hours, 26 minutes and is rated PG-13.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-30553859460470733322022-05-09T15:01:00.002-04:002023-09-24T23:09:04.598-04:00The Northman<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzNmMiZUwu-MrEGEnMOkDpOfDg1SztJPZhy_JIoEsafGQUht4Al5Kk2yC2K2g6gJAkacfi8nG5mAP9Dv9bZWwY95eZvzYORHohsK8zeNs_3lE2os-r3DcukfF4bbajwL8dbjf7Xfr7B5rPf1UjdJRDZd9Qnr7S4-DyeHA3OwmcEUwLxwqTECWkwWXL/s328/The%20Northman.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="234" data-original-width="328" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzNmMiZUwu-MrEGEnMOkDpOfDg1SztJPZhy_JIoEsafGQUht4Al5Kk2yC2K2g6gJAkacfi8nG5mAP9Dv9bZWwY95eZvzYORHohsK8zeNs_3lE2os-r3DcukfF4bbajwL8dbjf7Xfr7B5rPf1UjdJRDZd9Qnr7S4-DyeHA3OwmcEUwLxwqTECWkwWXL/w200-h143/The%20Northman.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">I remember just enough about Shakespeare to wonder if this movie was based on Hamlet. After all, a young prince vows revenge for the death of his father the king at the hands of his vengeful uncle. </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But no, Hamlet was written in about 1600, and this film springs from the Scandinavian Legend of Amleth at least four hundred years earlier, so it appears that Shakespeare was the one who borrowed from history. All the same murderous villainy applies.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">When the young Viking prince Amleth, played as an adult by Sweden’s Alexander Skarsgard witnesses his father’s murder, he dedicates his life to vengeance, engaging in a sort of Viking cross-fit that develops bodybuilder abs and shoulders. His role in 2016’s <i>The Legend of Tarzan</i> was his prior motivation to get ripped.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="ipc-inline-listitem" style="margin: 0in; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />His mother, Nicole Kidman’s <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11138512/characters/nm0000173?ref_=tt_cl_c_2"><span color="windowtext" style="text-decoration: none;"><span data-testid="cast-item-characters-with-as" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; line-height: inherit;">Queen Gudrún</span></span></a> is taken captive by Uncle <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11138512/characters/nm0051903?ref_=tt_cl_c_3"><span color="windowtext" style="text-decoration: none;"><span data-testid="cast-item-characters-with-as" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; line-height: inherit;">Fjölnir The Brotherless</span></span></a>, played by Claes Bang. Or has she? At this point, Ethan Hawke <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11138512/characters/nm0000160?ref_=tt_cl_c_4"><span color="windowtext" style="text-decoration: none;">as King Aurvandil War-Raven</span></a> exits the script, but not before mentoring the prince in a creepy rite of passage overseen by a costumed shaman, channeling his wolfen spirit animal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Amleth’s mantra is revisited throughout the film:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> “I will avenge you father,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> I will save you mother,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> I will kill you Fjölnir”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He spends time in a trance-like “berserker” state during battle scenes that aren’t for the squeamish. Later, sneaking onto a slaveship bound for Iceland (actually Ireland), he eventually proves himself worth saving, but never equal, to the masters within his uncle’s village.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Director Robert Eggers had a fanatical attention to detail in sets, costuming, rituals and mythic elements that created an immersive Viking experience for the audience. Even Iceland’s own Bjork got to play the part of a Seeress, directing Amleth in his quest.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The life-altering plot twist for Amleth won’t be revealed here, but an epic hand-to-hand battle with his uncle ensues against a Hellish volcanic backdrop of flowing lava, the “lake of fire.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Anya Taylor-Joy (The Queen’s Gambit) brings her widely spaced eyes to the gloomy medieval setting, speaking quite a bit of Old Norse, more of Eggers attention to detail.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">“Research and gore” is how one critic summarized <i>The Northman</i>. It is fortunate that this sensory </span><span style="font-family: arial;">experience doesn’t include the olfactory. This was undoubtedly an extraordinarily stinky time.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Northman</i> (2022) runs 2 hours 17 minutes and is rated R.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-46211159023510622812022-04-23T14:35:00.004-04:002023-09-24T23:09:19.679-04:00 The Unbearable Weight of Immense Talent<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih9eQSVNf4ZAeoyGYufzNKPTsjtEZe4dvruGpOdwWLpMF2HaO9v7-mfWUxM1rAjQzwWGJKgO66CHdObJjCLvEumVBFewfr7EvcOVc14K4_Xt-YrVOMDWH986e-xp3hQKVjXpV2v5jhFtydwCiQ5UGodDp1bQcVSIzpQlMB6VJ1d05cTPC-WWDQGg--/s363/Unbearable.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="363" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih9eQSVNf4ZAeoyGYufzNKPTsjtEZe4dvruGpOdwWLpMF2HaO9v7-mfWUxM1rAjQzwWGJKgO66CHdObJjCLvEumVBFewfr7EvcOVc14K4_Xt-YrVOMDWH986e-xp3hQKVjXpV2v5jhFtydwCiQ5UGodDp1bQcVSIzpQlMB6VJ1d05cTPC-WWDQGg--/w200-h168/Unbearable.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Attention Nicolas Cage fans: you must see this film!</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Much of the fun in this film was lost on me because I’m just not a Nic Cage fan. But I realized what was being done, since with over 100 films to his credit it’s hard not to have seen at least a few of his movies, from <i>The Rock, Raising Arizona, Peggy Sue Got Married</i> and <i>Gone in 60 Seconds</i> to <i>Con Air</i>, <i>City of Angels, National Treasure, Ghost Rider</i> and <i>Face/Off</i>. And then there are the forgotten moments in his career like his brief appearance in the 1982 classic, <i>Fast Times at Ridgemont High</i>, where he went mostly unnoticed, until now. Here you go, from the scene in which a customer demands that Brad give his money back for an unsatisfying breakfast.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGbY8Kl-K83ZdZaAHN3HomP2Lz8fsJNiw8A8N0ehV9GcfWMaVadv8kwJnq_l8fKLT-sux8sl4hsNmwDrDKwRusnHBmUH9muBy1FYzyPEO0ycRSKTrTEE12WA0H6EqHKi4Rn1nQWwdDZFtnMJycQaifyEPjJUrFPhJEOH4RQelzsn6rMMZhAyDJEm7w/s359/Fast%20Times%20Cage.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="359" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGbY8Kl-K83ZdZaAHN3HomP2Lz8fsJNiw8A8N0ehV9GcfWMaVadv8kwJnq_l8fKLT-sux8sl4hsNmwDrDKwRusnHBmUH9muBy1FYzyPEO0ycRSKTrTEE12WA0H6EqHKi4Rn1nQWwdDZFtnMJycQaifyEPjJUrFPhJEOH4RQelzsn6rMMZhAyDJEm7w/w200-h139/Fast%20Times%20Cage.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: arial;">Starting with a long, awkward title, </span><i style="font-family: arial;">The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent</i><span style="font-family: arial;">, the idea of Nic Cage playing a partially fictionalized version of himself was intriguing enough to merit watching. On and off screen, his antics and newsworthy intensity have captured fan attention for over forty years. He has the overacting tendencies of William Shatner, on speed.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Names are dropped and scenes from his career are reprised throughout the film as Cage is drawn in financial desperation to the home of a dangerous and wealthy superfan in Mallorca, Spain. He is offered one million dollars to attend Javi Gutierrez’s birthday party. A bromance ensues as Javi and Nic become embroiled in a real-life action adventure while they drop acid and brainstorm ideas for a movie they want to make together. This TurDuckEn effect layers film upon film upon film, and the biggest surprise to us as the audience is that it actually works.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">And Cage is no stranger to celebrity worship. His obsession with Elvis led him to collect vast amounts of The King’s memorabilia, including a two-year marriage to Lisa Marie Presley. Javi is similarly afflicted, with a secured vault of Cage artifacts that is “impressive” according to the fictional Nick. A life-sized wax statue of the actor holding the two golden guns from Face/Off factors significantly later in the film.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The intentionally silly and self-deprecating beginning of the film endears us to the aging actor, so narcissistically out of touch with his wife and daughter it seems nothing can save the relationships. Enter Neil Patrick Harris as Cage’s agent with the birthday party offer. The timing of a lost movie deal forces Cage’s hand. He takes the seemingly easy million, determined to quit acting when the job is complete.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">To the surprise of Tiffany Haddish and her partner, two CIA agents surveilling Javi Gutierrez, Cage’s arrival provides an opportunity to get eyes inside the fortress-like estate and recover the kidnapped daughter of a political candidate. From there the film spins into a series of Cage’s film references, with fawning fans dropping names of favorite films, eager to be near the action movie star.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Young Nicolas Kim Coppola, nephew of Francis Ford Coppola acquired the stage name Nic Cage in order to avoid being perceived as riding on the coattails of his famous uncle. In this film, the fictional character is named Nick, rather than Nic. A bit confusing, but not a distraction.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Eventually, the two aspiring film makers merge their hope for a “deeply human, character-driven drama” with a predictable action hero rescue of a kidnapped girl. The developing script begins to play out in an actual series of events that make for a pretty good thriller.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Two titles are named throughout the film as favorites of either Nic or Javi. They are <i>Paddington 2</i> and <i>The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari,</i> a 1920 genre-defining classic exercise in surrealism that earned critical praise. By the end of this film I was curious to see them both.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The resulting movie has a bit of everything: car chases, undercover disguises, gun battles and frequent comic exchanges. Cage initially rejected the idea of playing himself and didn’t want to see the finished product. Recurring scenes in which he is lectured by “Nicky,” his younger self, a CGI masterpiece, cleverly reveal his inner struggles and become a vehicle for yet more memorable lines. After all, he’s, “Nick Effffffffffinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn Cage!”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Unbearable Weight of Immense Talent (2022) </i>runs 1 hour, 47 minutes and is rated R.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-90278806886245990932022-04-10T17:54:00.001-04:002023-09-24T23:09:30.288-04:00CODA<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjnYHC4Jcr2K7Gx3LFUraZ7gfyn1EX76H-iUQX2KrhdGdrlipcwqxlhY3hLX9AfLBErerEY91AAxfc_03q8lnGTuK0bRScktF1sX9nnn9V6p392j0Y-mfWifg_AFFUZBIJAGwBPPO-WPD2qrDcAJrtIB5p95GMBkchQySvmqcvkCzfp-DyEebjmrsU/s317/Coda.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="317" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjnYHC4Jcr2K7Gx3LFUraZ7gfyn1EX76H-iUQX2KrhdGdrlipcwqxlhY3hLX9AfLBErerEY91AAxfc_03q8lnGTuK0bRScktF1sX9nnn9V6p392j0Y-mfWifg_AFFUZBIJAGwBPPO-WPD2qrDcAJrtIB5p95GMBkchQySvmqcvkCzfp-DyEebjmrsU/w200-h179/Coda.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">What would a film featuring deaf actors be without the queen of deaf actresses, Marlee Matlin? She won the best actress Oscar in 1986 for the film <i>Children of a Lesser God</i>. And here she is after a long career, in the film that won the “Best” award this year. Note that I don’t agree that this is the best film. It was good, but not great.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Kudos to the writers and producers for assembling a fine cast and story that honors the deaf. But despite solid performances and decent cinematography the script wandered in multiple directions, seeming contrived at times even to the point of being hokey.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">But perhaps reality is a bit that way. We seldom pursue objectives on a singular path. Life gets in the way. In this case, the following subplots collide in the person of Ruby Rossi, played by Emilia Jones.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">She is the only hearing member of an otherwise deaf four-person family<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Her parents can’t understand her love of singing. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">She works on the family fishing boat, struggling to make ends meet<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">She is shy, but loves to sing. A flamboyant choir director becomes her mentor.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Ruby wants to go to college. Her parents want her to remain part of the family business.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Her hyper-sexed best friend is hot for her brother. Not cool, friend.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">A boy in her choir falls in love with her, screws up and is redeemed, then left behind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">This very un-subtle journey to a fairly remarkable ending is a vehicle for stuff we’ve seen before. Beginning to end, this is a showcase for American Sign Language, but as usual that requires subtitles and audible interpretation.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The setting is a typical roughneck fishing village, crews fighting over diminishing catches and “the man” who wants to monitor boats and control pricing.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Ruby runs out of her first audition, but winds up in the starring duet for the school concert. This all smacks of a very long GLEE episode, but despite a lovely voice she’s nowhere near that level of talent. In fact she spent nine months learning ASL, took voice lessons and learned to work a fishing trawler. And then she wound up in the year’s best picture. Go figure. Yay Emilia!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The most powerful scene in the film takes place during Ruby’s eventual audition for the Berklee College of Music in Boston. With alumni the likes of John Mayer, Quincy Jones, Donald Fagen and Al Di Meola, this seems a reach. But during her performance, with her family in the balcony, the film’s Director chose to go silent for a gut-wrenching thirty seconds. Here we are thrust into the silent world of the deaf. We hold our breath and ride it out. Sure, we don’t get to hear much of Ruby’s song, but neither do they. They are there supporting regardless. This is indeed the “Coda” of her journey. A wonderful play on words in a story about Children Of Deaf Adults.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">A few laughs, some nice music and a tearful happy ending. That sure beats a slap in the face at the Oscars.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i>CODA</i> runs 1 hour, 58 minutes and is rated PG-13.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-26677309761308548682022-04-10T09:02:00.005-04:002023-09-24T23:09:55.792-04:00The Lost City<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRpr3xmEAzSsMhkKuu-r9xcAfnjWeZTdPFNHv8vlPyi5TgMgGmSeiEMl5yq_cJQjjWaTDXVZejzyktqek-7dlWJW6EuvrWJwPeVzKxaICyQkM0NFRWm1AIxTFRUWVN5AgygLBUfpL8lGOVpwC7hFgBaND7TOixYxzT8BAsvJtYQUuQrFNfxdTdC4D/s350/The%20Lost%20City.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="263" data-original-width="350" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRpr3xmEAzSsMhkKuu-r9xcAfnjWeZTdPFNHv8vlPyi5TgMgGmSeiEMl5yq_cJQjjWaTDXVZejzyktqek-7dlWJW6EuvrWJwPeVzKxaICyQkM0NFRWm1AIxTFRUWVN5AgygLBUfpL8lGOVpwC7hFgBaND7TOixYxzT8BAsvJtYQUuQrFNfxdTdC4D/w200-h150/The%20Lost%20City.png" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">If you’re a fan of Sandra Bullock movies like <i>Miss Congeniality (1 & 2)</i> and <i>The Heat</i>, you no doubt appreciate her mastery of physical comedy. <i>The Lost City</i> combines that talent with the action of recent treasure-hunt adventures like <i>Jungle Cruise</i> and <i>Uncharted</i>. The treasure-seeking genre seems to have hit bottom, and most attempts fall far short of <i>Indiana Jones</i> and leave you feeling as if you’ve seen it all before. The comic element here adds life to an otherwise repetitive story, but is it enough? It may be, since the film is filled with great comic lines.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Bullock plays reclusive action-romance novelist Loretta Sage, five years the widow of a real-life adventurer, on a reluctant book tour with her cover model Dash McMahon, played in a Fabio-like wig by Channing Tatum, who also does a good job here being funny and self-deprecating. Enter Daniel Radcliffe as crazed billionaire Abigail Fairfax, in a role that is certainly not his first break from Harry Potter, but you still find yourself thinking, “Oh, that’s Harry Potter.” Fairfax has a fragment of script in a lost language that is key to the location of a fabulous artifact, a red crown of some sort. He believes only Loretta can translate the text, so he kidnaps her and whisks her away to his archaeological dig in the jungle (The Dominican Republic) – The Lost City.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If humor isn’t enough, then cast Brad Pitt and Channing Tatum for the ladies, get Channing naked and put Sandra’s face about six inches from his naked bottom half, front and back while she removes leeches that are turning him into a “blood Jamba Juice.” It is reported they had to repeat this scene about fifty times because Tatum couldn’t deliver a line without laughing. Pitt, when asked by Bullock, “Why are you so handsome?” replies, “My father was a weatherman.” His time on screen is short, killed off while rescuing the kidnapped author from Radcliffe’s jungle compound.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Bullock spends most of the film in a “glitter onesie” that she complains is “giving me a wedgie, front and back.” The clingy jumpsuit is covered in red sequins that leave a breadcrumb trail through the jungle, and is mostly form fitting except that Bullock has gotten so thin it appears baggy at times, and her ribs can be seen in the low-cut front. Eat something Sandra! Somewhat sadly, she must be fighting the battle of many aging Hollywood actresses, despite her natural girl-nextdoor prettiness. Botox has given her mouth the occasionally awkward appearance of having come from the dentist. But Sandra, in the Producer role clearly enjoys being cast alongside hunks like Pitt and Tatum. Recall she was once married to Monster Garage host and badass Jesse James.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If you prefer Bullock’s serious side, like <i>Unforgiveable</i>, <i>Bird Box</i> and <i>The Blindside</i>, this is not the film for you. She has quite a range. This is her movie, but she shares nicely with Tatum. As action rom-coms go, this one’s a hit.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Lost City (2022)</i> runs 1 hour, 52 minutes and is rated PG-13</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-80034228529978548402022-03-15T18:31:00.002-04:002023-09-24T23:10:30.488-04:00 Death on the Nile<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi6QPP9cfAjAOUkHjBOLfzd5NIQcXeZxDuSjqO6ZSEqeeQ0xwwO71BEx99GPur8YXCKeKBaggtV_qr_08FQQA5jEu5wHrCp8Jj9Pzw2eMhVM4vb0O6LJbcIXd_KQgE_s-FDi01MJgSzHTJO3XRmhPeWBFcImmBbKD8cof__bygkxCGjWdnGi1cYf9JQ=s449" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="297" data-original-width="449" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi6QPP9cfAjAOUkHjBOLfzd5NIQcXeZxDuSjqO6ZSEqeeQ0xwwO71BEx99GPur8YXCKeKBaggtV_qr_08FQQA5jEu5wHrCp8Jj9Pzw2eMhVM4vb0O6LJbcIXd_KQgE_s-FDi01MJgSzHTJO3XRmhPeWBFcImmBbKD8cof__bygkxCGjWdnGi1cYf9JQ=w200-h133" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">It’s tempting to comment on the stunning cinematography in <i>Death on the Nile</i>, with shots in Egypt of the Sphinx, Pyramids of Giza and the Abu Simbel temples, but in reality the entire film was shot in studios in England.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Based on the 1937 Agatha Christie novel of the same name, fans of the obsessive compulsive but brilliant detective Hercule Poirot will enjoy this dramatic recreation of her written work. Here he is played by Kenneth Branagh, who also directs the film.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Christie recipe for murder mysteries requires the initial introduction of the cast of characters. This can feel a bit contrived, rushed, and not unlike weekly episodes of The Love Boat. But once assembled, the story begins to gel and each person on a luxury river cruise down the Nile appears to have motive and opportunity to commit the crime.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The steam driven paddle-wheeler Karnak evokes feelings of the Titanic. There are plenty of private cabins, hiding places and corridors through which chases can take place. On board is an electric guitar strumming female singer whose daughter becomes romantically involved with Poirot’s friend Bouc. But wait, were Gibson guitars around in 1937? In fact, they were introduced in 1936. That would have been a glaring mistake. Phwew!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Armie Hammer plays Simon Doyle, newly-wed husband of wealthy Linnet Ridgeway, played by Gal Godot. Her performance here, as in other films, seems flat. She lacks screen charisma. Maybe you don’t need that to play Wonder Woman, but it would have been welcome here.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Jacqueline de Bellefort (Emma Mackey) is the bitter fiancé left behind by Doyle, and she keeps showing up in all the wrong places, with a gun.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Poirot’s patented interviews with guests lead you astray, and guessing “who done it” all the way to the story’s end. This film earned a “That was okay” upon leaving the theater.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Death on the Nile (2022)</i> runs 2 hours, 8 minutes and is rated PG-13</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-39571198372615828342022-03-15T17:06:00.001-04:002023-09-24T23:11:06.101-04:00 Spider-man: No Way Home<p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiclWHpXWe9cUvdj57Vk06qt1zqrb5C75QjHt78yQ88wcZ75gDGpArfmnMSdYElP7OElGCWXiNYQgCOmMMUgFNeXjkG4cGk316Fm17qNI5S8HkeA7KF76xlU60759vyYEQzTF9p8iEViwEPNQOwNJyZ3Iu1PJD6C0wgYZtL2XonGugxebvCl_wBTOP6=s397" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: arial; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="322" data-original-width="397" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiclWHpXWe9cUvdj57Vk06qt1zqrb5C75QjHt78yQ88wcZ75gDGpArfmnMSdYElP7OElGCWXiNYQgCOmMMUgFNeXjkG4cGk316Fm17qNI5S8HkeA7KF76xlU60759vyYEQzTF9p8iEViwEPNQOwNJyZ3Iu1PJD6C0wgYZtL2XonGugxebvCl_wBTOP6=w200-h163" width="200" /></span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Spider-man fans can’t get enough of their high-flying hero. And the Marvel Universe is taking full advantage of that addiction. This latest film features Tom Holland, considered to be the best Spider-man alongside real-life girlfriend Zendaya (Zendaya Maree Stoermer Coleman) as the latest “M.J.” in the franchise.</span></div><p></p></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">There’s really no way to discuss this movie without spoiling certain elements, so be warned. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">At times the presence of Doctor Strange threatened to overshadow the main character in <i>Spider-man: No Way Home</i>. I feel that Benedict Cumberbatch is too powerful an actor to portray this character, but that train has left the station. That Strange acquired his skills after spending time studying mystic arts in Tibet, casting spells and opening portals with flaming hand motions lacks the fictional credibility of genuine super powers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Other favorites from the Spidey franchise return, most notably Otto Octavius, Doctor Octopus. A rupture in the multiverse allows a multitude of past villains to join the cast. Willem Dafoe is welcome in any capacity, but please tell me why two previous Spider-men show up as the actors who played them, Tobey McGuire and Andrew Garfield. We all know that’s not how the Multiverse works, right? But it did allow for some inter-character banter that was amusing for a while. “You mean your web comes out of your wrists?” the other two Peters ask McGuire.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The gag got a bit old, but is fun for fans.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So, chaos ensues, battles rage, M.J. is saved by a team effort of heroes, and ultimately Peter Parker must make the decision to be completely forgotten by everyone who has ever known him in order to heal the crack in the Multiverse with Doctor Strange’s help.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Two hours would have sufficed, but once again, this is a movie for the fans. And as usual, closing credits entice us with a future crossover between the <i>Venom</i> series and this one.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Great action and effects, but I’m just tired of this arm of Marvel.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Spider-man: No Way Home (2021)</i> runs 2 hours, 28 minutes and is rated PG-13<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><o:p> </o:p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-21565364779191503402022-02-19T08:26:00.001-05:002023-09-24T23:11:21.282-04:00Uncharted<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjFHqGMs9VGwhXrOYNQJT2Zrk0_jInsV8MxTybBpfMM5Ro_5ic20YnJVSHrORjm2cI6wxgdcHREq6f-MaqZV7RsmcZwfnxSMU-9iAGB-fziz7eQQPyRQq9AoN62qN07dWp5HJzCSVfMu5zSgy7LUnDqRoFJW9ryXm0U1jjwEXkKVWHGoOw-oGSbfRFW=s282" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="219" data-original-width="282" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjFHqGMs9VGwhXrOYNQJT2Zrk0_jInsV8MxTybBpfMM5Ro_5ic20YnJVSHrORjm2cI6wxgdcHREq6f-MaqZV7RsmcZwfnxSMU-9iAGB-fziz7eQQPyRQq9AoN62qN07dWp5HJzCSVfMu5zSgy7LUnDqRoFJW9ryXm0U1jjwEXkKVWHGoOw-oGSbfRFW=w200-h155" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">Mix all the best parts of <i>Indiana Jones</i> and <i>Pirates of the Caribbean</i> and you get a movie that tries too hard to be something it’s not. Perhaps if Johnny Depp and Harrison Ford visited central casting when Mark Wahlberg and Tom Holland read for the parts of Victor “Sully” Sullivan and Nathan Drake respectively this movie would have had the humor and charisma of its ancestors. Instead, we have a mashup that only sort of works. Or maybe if Steven Spielberg took the director’s chair away from Ruben Fleischer–<i>move aside, buddy, let me show you how to make magic. </i>In any case, this movie is based on a popular Playstation video game series. They may have been catering to a captive audience.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This may all be too critical of a film that has a couple of really intriguing ideas, but like our heroes’ quest in <i>Uncharted</i>, searching for a long lost multi-billion-dollar hoard of Spanish gold, the film drags its audience through an arduous archeological dig searching for those precious nuggets.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">When you leave a theater so thoroughly entertained and engaged it seems only a few minutes has elapsed, the movie is a winner with a great script and believable characters. In the case of <i>Uncharted</i>, about twenty minutes could have been cut without losing anything. Instead, a few of the best comedic lines presented in the trailer were cut in editing. It’s great when there’s so much good material that the trailer teases without ruining the film, but it’s also a possible sign that the trailer needs to be better than the feature to attract an audience.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Holland and Wahlberg play a street-wise kid and a seasoned mentor, learning when to trust each other (never) and watching for the next betrayal. Maybe Holland is being groomed as the next generation of leading-man action hero, but he’s still too boyish to be convincing. And Wahlberg is hardly old enough to hang it up. Michael B. Jordan and Sean Connery would have been a better pairing if the latter was still with us.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If you like clever stories like <i>The Da Vinci Code</i>, with an unraveling trail of clues and plot twists, you might be willing to overlook <i>Uncharted’s</i> flaws. There are some spectacular action sequences, and like all good redemptive endings, the baddest of the villains gets hers the worst.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">One quick aside: there is a thug whose Irish brogue is so thick he can’t be understood. It’s a great gag that could have been taken further.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">And now for a few words about the female stars of <i>Uncharted</i>. Tati Gabrielle (Marienne from <i>You</i>) plays Braddock. Of course she’s beautiful and does her best fighting in tight leather pants. But she is consistently nasty and deserves her comeuppance. After all, she casually takes out Antonio Banderas, appearing here as the head of the Moncada family dynasty, a breath of fresh and convincing bad-guy air. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Sophia Ali (Grey’s Anatomy – Dr. Dahlia Qadri) plays Chloe, a habitual backstabber like her male co-stars, even after being saved by Nathan. Come on, Hollywood, stop with the white male savior stuff. She’s a capable bad-ass, not a damsel in distress. Also, have you noticed in movies, when characters drown they just spit a little water and are back in action in the next scene?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Another overused plot device is the leaping hand-catch, one character literally leaping from a ship to a helicopter where the pilot has left the controls, or jumping from a plane to a plummeting cargo pallet where someone holds on tight, at the last moment grabbing a hand and being pulled to safety. This would most likely rip the receiver’s arm from the shoulder. They are not flying circus performers, working with gravity instead of against it. Oh well, it looks good.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">You could do worse than to see this movie (<i><a href="https://www.vixflixreview.com/2022/02/jackass-forever.html" style="color: #954f72;">Jackass Forever</a></i> or <i><a href="https://www.vixflixreview.com/2022/02/moonfall.html" style="color: #954f72;">Moonfall</a></i>.) But you can do far, far better. See my reviews of <i><a href="https://www.vixflixreview.com/2022/01/the-kings-man_21.html" style="color: #954f72;">The King’s Man</a></i> and <i><a href="https://www.vixflixreview.com/2021/12/king-richard.html" style="color: #954f72;">King Richard</a></i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Uncharted </i>(2022) runs 1 hour, 56 minutes and is rated PG-13</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-65599958691123069072022-02-18T15:27:00.006-05:002023-09-24T23:11:34.431-04:00Dog<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh9CIOPdD6PznBDDseddANpj9AlRnOZ8dH-cDh8WrM3YDnq_QVTtsGTGM6sH3Qsv_0CGMj2cNhyIzjLrwsOM_mEp_8H_1y6-fvM11Iu2Y1pK9T8so3Vf8JB-Per8K_I_3ZfWnn_afdqku1oPmj5cDieHLAQfqw_JS_y0hlKDGxwY9fC2xdLc8WfJuLl=s340" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="286" data-original-width="340" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh9CIOPdD6PznBDDseddANpj9AlRnOZ8dH-cDh8WrM3YDnq_QVTtsGTGM6sH3Qsv_0CGMj2cNhyIzjLrwsOM_mEp_8H_1y6-fvM11Iu2Y1pK9T8so3Vf8JB-Per8K_I_3ZfWnn_afdqku1oPmj5cDieHLAQfqw_JS_y0hlKDGxwY9fC2xdLc8WfJuLl=w200-h168" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;">I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been mistaken for Channing (Magic Mike) Tatum. I can’t tell you because it has never happened. Even at my youngest and in my best physical condition, I didn’t look anything like this square-jawed, athletic male model. (But I <i>am</i> a half inch taller.) He is perfectly cast in this film, though his acting is a bit forced at times. But cut him some slack, he’s on screen with a dog.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Dog</i> is Tatum’s directorial debut. He clearly had fun with the role of Briggs, a veteran Army Ranger suffering from a traumatic brain injury. His old captain will have nothing to do with his request to make a crucial phone call attesting to a full medical recovery, unless he goes on one final mission – bring an equally emotionally traumatized dog, Lulu, to the funeral of her recently killed “Dad,” Ranger Rodriguez. There is a Rodriguez subplot.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It is clear that Briggs has not fully recovered as we witness him routinely popping pills and experiencing a couple of seizures before and during the road trip. Parallels have been drawn between <i>Dog</i> and the movies <i>K-9</i> and <i>Turner and Hooch</i>. Those are sillier films and don’t deserve the comparison.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Lulu is not a German Shepherd. She is a Belgian Malinois, (A Belgian Shepherd) allegedly the healthier of the two breeds, but not recommended for people lacking experience with dog training. The heavily muzzled dog is a beautiful animal, but terrifying to look at or interact with. But being an Army Ranger gives Briggs the courage and determination to complete his mission.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">One caveat: the mission is scheduled to end after the funeral with Lulu being euthanized, deemed too difficult to handle.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">This is a buddy movie on several levels. The Ranger allegiance to other Rangers, one veteran to <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">another, and ultimately two traveling companions on a road trip from Oregon to Arizona, with stops along the way to visit their respective “families.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The opening song by John Prine laments, “How lucky can one guy get?” It’s a heartwarming introduction to the coming of age late in life by a guy who is the poster boy for how disastrous one guy can seem.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It’s uncertain why <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0452963?ref_=tt_cl_t_1"><span color="windowtext" style="text-decoration: none;">Q'orianka Kilcher</span></a> has top billing for brief, non-speaking appearances as the mother of Briggs’ three-year old daughter. She played Angela Blue Thunder in Yellowstone.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Carry some Kleenex for the end of this adventure. I won’t say any more. We hugged our dog when we got home.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dog (2022) runs 1 hour, 41 minutes and is rated PG-13</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-67603550644927821622022-02-09T14:47:00.001-05:002023-09-24T23:11:57.336-04:00 Jackass Forever<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjEqww8v2TsIsj24kCPKH7pG1OaeYK6Zakaqk7jNOWMXU6qZnD7uCm3amx77TuQf9qI84qb1G7KiOq1bsjVP8adPlwyRunoW5gMMB1EHn_JkTZ1DsgW9wqFRNylikxjLoV2hFopcHgJ_4l0qG6o-3qImuti47eJwp7wdKPIB7C61tK2y8zZSEZ6NLVa=s458" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="265" data-original-width="458" height="116" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjEqww8v2TsIsj24kCPKH7pG1OaeYK6Zakaqk7jNOWMXU6qZnD7uCm3amx77TuQf9qI84qb1G7KiOq1bsjVP8adPlwyRunoW5gMMB1EHn_JkTZ1DsgW9wqFRNylikxjLoV2hFopcHgJ_4l0qG6o-3qImuti47eJwp7wdKPIB7C61tK2y8zZSEZ6NLVa=w200-h116" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">I considered not reviewing this, since doing so is a confession that I saw the movie. Also, I am not easily offended or grossed out. As disgusting as I find the <i>Jackass</i> franchise, this movie just left me shaking my head and looking at my watch.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But here we go with a brief summary of this appalling waste of time and money, a nightmarish series of vignettes populated primarily by penises, scrotums, vomit and electric shocks.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This particular brand of physical comedy, if you can call it that, certainly has a loyal following. It’s just sad the world has gotten to a place where this is offered up as entertainment. But wait, how is this surprising given that this is the same culture that lofted a crude grifter to a position where he can actually ruin everything?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The stars of <i>Jackass</i> all play themselves, under the sadomasochistic tutelage of Johnny Knoxville, a guy who early on must have realized that people were actually watching <i>America’s Funniest Home Videos</i> for the clips where things go wrong and people get hurt. He no doubt was a fan of <i>ABC’s Wild World of Sports</i> not for “The thrill of victory,” but for “The agony of defeat.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Regarding the film itself - it is poorly written, filmed and edited. There is no acting, just a bunch of morons so hungry for fame they’d do almost anything to achieve it. Sadly, they sort of succeeded. And fans will like it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So if you like farts and feces, pig semen, violence, graphic male nudity and slapstick taken to an entirely horrific level, then this film’s for you. But don’t for a second think that this is something to aspire to. This is what losers look like.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Ironically, parents in Texas are banning books they find offensive for honest portrayal of LGBTQ relationships. Do they know what’s being shown at the local theater?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Jackass Forever</i> runs 1 hour, 36 minutes and is rated R. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-27301122102188571712022-02-04T08:34:00.004-05:002023-09-24T23:12:12.528-04:00Moonfall<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiVOu8VMfT0bsmoeIuLZSF1fI173HRP8At9-exg8zLP_v4wmBsWJmMNvPt737N0SWL3yIBcMzsW2UWBOTQaMF6s3fG9HNNaOtTe4958PlGabzS6S5qsVlZARPpynaBHPDIZngFijBZFxlG9qCdVuNGdbEaM0FrT-JZVARPFIdR7EdOzlFBn9iA5ZAKq=s402" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="310" data-original-width="402" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiVOu8VMfT0bsmoeIuLZSF1fI173HRP8At9-exg8zLP_v4wmBsWJmMNvPt737N0SWL3yIBcMzsW2UWBOTQaMF6s3fG9HNNaOtTe4958PlGabzS6S5qsVlZARPpynaBHPDIZngFijBZFxlG9qCdVuNGdbEaM0FrT-JZVARPFIdR7EdOzlFBn9iA5ZAKq=w200-h154" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;">I apologize for not writing this in the car on the way home from the theater. Precious moments make a difference when trying to save readers two hours and the cost of a movie ticket.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">That said, we have the worst film of 2022 in the can, and it’s only the beginning of February. I am going to spoil this movie in every way possible. If you can’t resist the tempting previews, go into it for the laughs, or perhaps as a drinking game (which would require viewing at home of course.) Terrible line – take a shot. Impossible feat of engineering – take two.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I can’t blame the actors for delivering horribly written lines. That should be pinned directly on the screenwriters. But Halle Berry is better than this, though she seems to have a track record of making bad decisions off screen. Her Oscar win for <i>Monster’s Ball</i> should have made <i>Moonfall</i> an obvious bad choice. Either the paycheck and starring role were irresistible, or she needs better representation. Did she read the script? Did her agent? Her character’s name is Jocinda Fowl. Really?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Likewise, Patrick Wilson as disgraced astronaut Brian Harper does an admirable job of working with a bad script. He’s a very recognizable face with a busy acting portfolio of films, but perhaps better known on Broadway. Here he’s piloting a little spaceship through the bowels of the Moon, like Luke Skywalker in the famous Deathstar scenes.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Consider the following:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">“Everything we understand about the known universe has just changed,” says Berry, straight faced. I laughed out loud.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">“We have to kill this thing!”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A brief pause, then she picks up the cell phone on an Earth being torn to pieces. Somehow cell towers are unaffected. She then gives her four-star general ex-husband orders not to nuke the Moon. And he listens.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">There’s an elapsed time problem throughout <i>Moonfall</i>. Events move from one to the next in jump cuts that could have merited making this an eight part limited series on Netflix. Instead, the audience is hurtling through space and time, much like the gravity-wave-generating Moon, headed out of its forever orbit toward Earth – in three weeks. I mean, let’s get right to it. And what is a gravity wave, other than a cool plot device for the graphics department?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">At this point I have to mention that I know at least one real person who believes in a conspiracy theory that we left the moon and never went back because of aliens, referencing a two minute audio blackout that, of course, was a deliberate NASA cover up. I don’t know if they also believe that the Moon is a “Megastructure” built around a white dwarf star that serves as its engine, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised. Otherwise, why would the Moon be precisely the right size, and the correct distance from the sun to produce eclipses. Why? Tell me!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The special effects and video graphics teams had a field day with this film. It’s actually fun to watch in that regard, however stupid the reasons for what’s colliding, exploding and being sucked into space. This is simply a disaster film, and as 3D rendering has become more powerful, more ludicrous scenes are possible.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Eventually, running on two rockets (“It’s not possible!), the Endeavor space shuttle is retrieved, covered with obscene graffiti, from an L.A. museum and escorted to a launch pad by military vehicles that bulldoze anything in their way. This alone would take years to pull off in the real world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Our hero, one of them, pilots the shuttle to the moon, then an orbiter/lander down a bottomless hole in a crater to the Moon’s hollow center (remember, it’s a megastructure), a spinning gyroscopic series of concentric rings that were home to an alien species, long gone.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The moon is defended by a morphing nanobot artificial intelligence, kind of a squid-like metallic malevolence. As Harper awakens in a scene reminiscent of the ending of <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i>, face to face with a holographic “construct” of his son as a child, he is told that, wait for it, the “aliens” were actually our ancestors, who created megastructures to populate the universe, but managed to create an AI that became self-aware and turned into Squid-bot, killing them all. Nice going, ancestors!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Enter our second hero, the reluctant astronaut, a chubby conspiracy geek with irritable bowel syndrome and crippling anxiety, who first discovered the Moon’s decaying orbit. He blows himself up, but is “scanned” and turned into another construct in the white-lit room. His cat, “Fuzz Aldrin” is with him – for eternity. And he’s excited about this.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Earth is saved. And ruined. But it’s a fresh start, and I’m so happy there’s no possibility of a sequel.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Moonfall</i> (2022) runs far too long in a galaxy much too near. (Two hours, PG-13)</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-52987762810080790042022-01-21T13:25:00.008-05:002023-09-24T23:12:24.299-04:00 The King’s Man<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYjnmCSHDMnNchvCspfuBeQ1BUSSzuLZorDYM6mrFwX2u-d40kaInnnrdzdqwwU3ZlhZXT-V8NQmA-GH6yW7fwWhkIiafMj7TLt6CTNe4-sU1pc3pRUy8R9OesyJo0xbjkAiZLNdTzfTZ-oNxvEAsmg47nrf1PHkrEJ_x-bV8QM7ArKYIFDBIDZRsC=s320" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYjnmCSHDMnNchvCspfuBeQ1BUSSzuLZorDYM6mrFwX2u-d40kaInnnrdzdqwwU3ZlhZXT-V8NQmA-GH6yW7fwWhkIiafMj7TLt6CTNe4-sU1pc3pRUy8R9OesyJo0xbjkAiZLNdTzfTZ-oNxvEAsmg47nrf1PHkrEJ_x-bV8QM7ArKYIFDBIDZRsC=w200-h150" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />If you’re a fan of the evolving <i>Kingsman</i> franchise, be warned: this film is far more serious than the previous two features - <i>Kingsman: The Secret Service</i> (2014) and <i>Kingsman: The Golden Circle</i> (2017.) Those satires were raunchier, more graphically violent and had an entirely different cast, with Colin Firth in the lead role.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The latest adventure could accurately be categorized as creative non-fiction. It is also an origin story, depicting the creation of the Kingsman organization in the early 1900s, and establishing the Kingsman tailor shop as the entryway to their oh-so-upscale and super-secret headquarters.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I love bookshelves with built in hidden doors. I want one.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Ralph Fiennes plays the Duke of Oxford, a reborn pacifist forced to confront a promise made to his dying wife when she was caught in crossfire during a military skirmish in 1902. The Duke’s son Conrad witnesses her death, is protected by the Duke’s manservant Shola (Djimon Hounsou) and then sheltered by the Duke as World War I is about to break out. Conrad has other ideas. Ever supportive Polly, the Duke’s housekeeper (Gemma Arterton) serves as surrogate wife, potential love interest, and eventual founding member of the Kingsman.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Therein lie two powerful subplots in <i>The King’s Man</i>. Woven into actual events, populated by characters out of history books, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914 ignites a global conflict, cascading through events and personalities of the era. We soon meet Grigori Rasputin, the Svengali-like monk and manipulator of the Russian Romanov family. He is portrayed with wonderful creepiness by Rhys Ifans. Even Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari (Valerie Pachner) has a blackmail role in the eventual decision by President Woodrow Wilson to enter the war.<br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> <br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">This is one of those films that has you saying, “That was good!” upon leaving the theater. There was plenty of intrigue, was well-acted and had heart-stopping stunts and action sequences. So many films have been made depicting the real-life events and people threaded through this fictional script, we feel familiar with many of them, and yearn to crack open a history book to learn more.<br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> <br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">Director Matthew Vaughn is already planning <i>Kingsman 3</i> and a possible sequel to <i>The King’s Man</i> prequel. We’re wondering where he’ll take the King’s Men (and women), all code named after King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Very fun stuff, and with this film, somewhat educational.<br /></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The King’s Man</i> (2021) runs 2 hours 11 minutes and is rated R.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-51358386293413463382021-12-06T23:09:00.001-05:002023-09-24T23:12:38.137-04:00King Richard<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiPwX6WkrBIX_Fx-19-miEd6OFy6wMRHqoQURJ_EH3sf7619agwCjpDhuF5ETgnRp1nogOCVyu6SS3Jm7SBHl0NVErG7pOhJB3Yqcmfixl3cY6BqzqnRuFzEgv1lyJqigC-tevO3AAiSuEkFtIhnU1SnZkrb8ZQK0K0JKPgORUUgkpKyfIBH2buPJbZ=s288" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="218" data-original-width="288" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiPwX6WkrBIX_Fx-19-miEd6OFy6wMRHqoQURJ_EH3sf7619agwCjpDhuF5ETgnRp1nogOCVyu6SS3Jm7SBHl0NVErG7pOhJB3Yqcmfixl3cY6BqzqnRuFzEgv1lyJqigC-tevO3AAiSuEkFtIhnU1SnZkrb8ZQK0K0JKPgORUUgkpKyfIBH2buPJbZ=w200-h151" width="200" /></a></div>I couldn’t help but compare this story to that of Rocky Balboa, knowing full well that the iconic boxer was fictional, and Venus Williams is not. And that’s what makes this biopic so incredible. Yet, the title character would (and did) have a problem with the use of that term. What’s incredible about a young tennis prodigy taking her first strides toward greatness at the age of fourteen? That she’s black and “straight outta Compton?” Well, yeah, there’s no getting around it. The odds were stacked against her, and that’s where Richard Williams gets credit for creating a bootcamp-like environment for all five of his daughters.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">The Williams girls, Venus (<a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5181138?ref_=tt_cl_t_4"><span color="windowtext" style="text-decoration: none;">Saniyya Sidney</span></a>) and<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> Serena (Demi Singleton) grew up in the 80s and 90s, when Compton, California was at its worst, the gangsta rap crucible that produced the likes of Dr. Dre, rap group N.W.A. whose album “Straight Outta Compton” inspired the 2015 movie of the same name about life in “the hood” and on streets controlled by the Bloods and Crips gangs. This was the era when Rodney King was mercilessly beaten by police, secretly recorded, and the catalyst for riots in Los Angeles.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Will Smith is Oscar-worthy for his portrayal of Williams, a self-taught tennis coach who claimed to have written a 78-page life plan for daughters Serena and Venus before they were born. His relentless pursuit of an improbable dream is fully supported by his wife Oracene, played by <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0254712?ref_=tt_cl_t_2"><span color="windowtext" style="text-decoration: none;">Aunjanue Ellis</span></a>. She also taught herself the game, but focused primarily on providing a superlative educational and spiritual environment for her five daughters, three from a previous marriage. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">As wife to a man so obsessed as to be nearly deranged or self-sabotaging at times, she is the check valve and mirror in the relationship, refocusing on the needs of the girls, not just the dreams of the man. And while she is an ardent feminist, both parents endure and struggle against the racism, gang violence and judgement of peers, neighbors and a tennis community that is about as pearly white and privileged as any sport ever has been.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">The results speak for themselves. Like Rocky, Venus goes the distance, and both girls become the “Michael Jordans” of the game. A fictional script that proposed this plot line would be hard to believe, but we’ve all been along for the ride as witnesses to the ascension of two sports legends, and sisters to boot.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">The acting is great, the tennis is exciting even if you’re not a fan, and the rather long film seems much shorter. Messages of privilege and racism are a bit heavy handed at times, but they need to be. Like other period pieces, the look back at a time not that long ago can often be cringe-worthy. To emerge, humble superstars from an environment in which tantrum-throwing infants like McEnroe and Connors dominated the sport, and cheating was “just part of the game,” is a testament to the success of the Willams’ parents tough love.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i>King Richard</i> (2021) runs 2 hours, 24 minutes and is rated PG-13.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8430067612197256441.post-58987490300582929422021-11-26T21:38:00.007-05:002023-09-24T23:13:04.109-04:00 Clifford the Big Red Dog<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEguKOYIvZWERmOkiy663zO7eyRY2I1OxzZHJAYO_cmwOeeCeXhHieTF7VTsL0XCFtn21yS1YxeDtnirf-wE2WLGK85Udx0cJVepPc9XumToc00psZgz9i8SGX7jV9vHINbEvUak6DQewgBcNB-eRBj9ctOZHntLGiRU5v8p_5-M_TZu39A2kvpSIjni=s302" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="245" data-original-width="302" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEguKOYIvZWERmOkiy663zO7eyRY2I1OxzZHJAYO_cmwOeeCeXhHieTF7VTsL0XCFtn21yS1YxeDtnirf-wE2WLGK85Udx0cJVepPc9XumToc00psZgz9i8SGX7jV9vHINbEvUak6DQewgBcNB-eRBj9ctOZHntLGiRU5v8p_5-M_TZu39A2kvpSIjni=w200-h162" width="200" /></a></div>If you spent much time reading books to your kids (I hope you did), you likely included a few about Clifford, the Big Red Dog. First published in 1963, over 75 titles sold more than 129 million copies in 13 languages. The character also spawned a PBS series with the late John Ritter voicing Clifford.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">In a nod to the late beloved author, Norman Bridwell, a main character in this movie is named Mr. Bridwell, proprietor of a somewhat mysterious animal exhibit in a tent that’s “larger on the inside” much like <i>Dr Who’s</i> Tardus. That’s where Bridwell, played by 82-year-old John Cleese, pairs Emily Elizabeth with an adorably animated little red puppy.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">The animation of Clifford is amazing. Only occasional moments look unnatural, but the eyes, fur and most movements are those of a playful puppy, very reminiscent of my daughter’s English cream golden retriever, George, who is now a big white dog. Throughout the film I had to remind myself that the actors were interacting with something that wasn’t actually there.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">So, the movie is cute and corny. As a PG film for kids, how could it be otherwise? But the action is almost non-stop, the topic of bullying is tackled head on, and the positive underlying message that it’s ok to be different strikes a much-needed chord of inclusion in these divisive times.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Darby Camp plays Emily. She’s been acting since she was a toddler and already has an impressive little portfolio, mostly in TV appearances. Isaac Wang, as Owen, has a secret crush on Emily and plays a cute as a button rich kid with some serious computer skills. His own resume is only two years old.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Jack Whitehall plays the scatterbrained uncle, Casey, left to babysit Emily just as Clifford arrives on the scene. The two of them try to hide, then contain, Clifford to no avail. And of course, a villainous corporate type wants to capture and study the giant dog to jump start his failing superfood company.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">This is a deliberately silly movie, perfect after a steady diet of murder and mayhem that seems to permeate most current offerings. There were lots of kids in the audience, along with parents who explained much of what was happening, but clearly enjoying the chance to share in the fictional adventure on screen.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">If you need some mind-candy, a break from the evening news, and a chance to step back a couple of decades and visit a big old red friend, this works nicely. The only way it could have been improved would be as a Christmas movie. Timing as a holiday release was already on their side.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i>Clifford the Big Red Dog (2021)</i> runs 1 hour, 36 minutes and is rated PG.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">😎</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you like fiction and you're in the mood for over 50 short stories, please consider buying </i></span><i style="font-family: arial;">"<a href="https://a.co/d/ajLL4ql" target="_blank">Natural Selections</a>," at Amazon.com. Click on the image below.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3U7WnwW" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdYJlEPi0GDWROa860BZcDGYovKg9AAuL4kxuZ9nxv7p4fYEMPch80M4ueAArVA12SvDaxxH2nyiaty6xI7VtEg_hoyoyjDjKgWPuLPkR6FeKjjwWeGpYdtNTP_MgsSNRSqtKZn4JjK9GH6aeWljVGzck3d3Mawtj8B-KbKvuRmSqL1-oW8yj6fE8qj7I/w145-h218/natural%20selections.jpeg" width="145" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Or if you'd prefer seventy non-fiction stories inspired by a town in Illinois, please consider buying <a href="https://a.co/d/gMtMvgN" target="_blank">Park Ridge Memories</a> also on Amazon. Click on the image below.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://a.co/d/3LMc9V6" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dP7invdI0kOq1v3A4bAY_nszfwSYdXkmQrW1Qqv-YX5kpv1RrOgvsxftKP5uhWflDBT8cFq7soa2ufgafCgyFt1EH8j5QOLQ_9wnw4I5ikk9ELMQZhKg3qgDU6iwdQYgvTkiRLoAALGlefhK4bAqbJX02NbAgunN7IZWFHWLcPyWTW5B1wHwRtm7khc/w149-h224/Book.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>V C Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05558748559136237608noreply@blogger.com