Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! Here's James Taylor with trumpet player Chris Botti doing a jazz version of "Winter Wonderland." Enjoy.
Monday, December 25, 2017
Sunday, December 24, 2017
The Disaster Artist review
In cinema there are movies that are so bad that they're good. If you have enjoyed any episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000, you know what I mean. Of course, that means the movie is so bad that it's funny. In 2003, director, writer and "actor" Tommy Wiseau released his cinematic Frankenstein "The Room" on the American public. Good thing he rented a theater in Los Angeles. Because it got seen and enjoyed as bad cinema by critics and celebrities. The Disaster Artist is the story of Wiseau and the making of The Room.
The movie starts out in a San Francisco acting class where Greg Sestero (Dave Franco) is attending. Student Tommy Wiseau (James Franco) butchers a scene from Tennessee Williams' A Streetcare Named Desire. It's so bizarre and over the top that it's funny. Wiseau doesn't realize this but it moves Greg to meet him after the class. They become friends and roommates. Eventually, they decide to move to Wiseau's apartment in Los Angeles to pursue their acting dreams. While Greg has good looks and some talent starts to get him work, Wiseau's lack of talent, Eastern European accent causes his career to grind to a halt. Frustrated with his progress, Wiseau writes a screenplay, and uses his money to make a movie called "The Room." He also will play the lead Johnny, an All-American type. He gets Greg to play Johnny's best friend, Mark.
Director James Franco's portrayal of Wiseau is brilliant. He get's Wiseau's Easter European speech rhythms just right. But we're not just talking about imitation here. His Wiseau is a misunderstood man-child with a big heart and big dreams. There's jealousy and affection that can be seen under a Spock like facade. Franco's comic timing makes the mundane and bizarre hilarious.
Based on the real life Greg Sestero's book "The Disaster Artist" with a screenplay by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist finds all the places where to depict comedy of the real life of Tommy Wiseau and the making of The Room. Director Franco knows how to stage the ridiculous and unafraid of embarrassing himself. There's a scene where Franco lets us see him wearing a modesty pouch which looks ridiculous when you're naked and even more so when you are standing around and arguing about a scene.
The Disaster Artist is like another movie about the making of bad cinema, Ed Wood. (1994) That film explored the making of Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959) by a another disaster artist of cinema, Ed Wood. They both have similar themes. Guys with big dreams and no talent. The difference between them is that Wiseau knows he's the butt of the joke where Wood passed away before his cinematic lunacy became "popular." Wiseau makes a cameo in an end credit scene to The Disaster Artist thus acknowledging that The Room was a terrible movie that made people laugh. I say to him he should feel good about making people happy.
The Disaster Artist is a funny, heartfelt and yes, optimistic film. It's also one of the best movies of the year. The grade is A.
The movie starts out in a San Francisco acting class where Greg Sestero (Dave Franco) is attending. Student Tommy Wiseau (James Franco) butchers a scene from Tennessee Williams' A Streetcare Named Desire. It's so bizarre and over the top that it's funny. Wiseau doesn't realize this but it moves Greg to meet him after the class. They become friends and roommates. Eventually, they decide to move to Wiseau's apartment in Los Angeles to pursue their acting dreams. While Greg has good looks and some talent starts to get him work, Wiseau's lack of talent, Eastern European accent causes his career to grind to a halt. Frustrated with his progress, Wiseau writes a screenplay, and uses his money to make a movie called "The Room." He also will play the lead Johnny, an All-American type. He gets Greg to play Johnny's best friend, Mark.
Director James Franco's portrayal of Wiseau is brilliant. He get's Wiseau's Easter European speech rhythms just right. But we're not just talking about imitation here. His Wiseau is a misunderstood man-child with a big heart and big dreams. There's jealousy and affection that can be seen under a Spock like facade. Franco's comic timing makes the mundane and bizarre hilarious.
Based on the real life Greg Sestero's book "The Disaster Artist" with a screenplay by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist finds all the places where to depict comedy of the real life of Tommy Wiseau and the making of The Room. Director Franco knows how to stage the ridiculous and unafraid of embarrassing himself. There's a scene where Franco lets us see him wearing a modesty pouch which looks ridiculous when you're naked and even more so when you are standing around and arguing about a scene.
The Disaster Artist is like another movie about the making of bad cinema, Ed Wood. (1994) That film explored the making of Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959) by a another disaster artist of cinema, Ed Wood. They both have similar themes. Guys with big dreams and no talent. The difference between them is that Wiseau knows he's the butt of the joke where Wood passed away before his cinematic lunacy became "popular." Wiseau makes a cameo in an end credit scene to The Disaster Artist thus acknowledging that The Room was a terrible movie that made people laugh. I say to him he should feel good about making people happy.
The Disaster Artist is a funny, heartfelt and yes, optimistic film. It's also one of the best movies of the year. The grade is A.
Merry Crappy Christmas, Treasury Secretary Mnuchin.
Conservative Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin received an appropriate Christmas present. It was a box wrapped in holiday papers. And what was the gift? A box of horse poop. New York Daily News. I'm guessing the message was for Mnuchin and conservative President Trump's economic plans which are to um... poop on the working man and support the big rich. I don't think it was for his production of Suicide Squad. (2016)
Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Mnuchin and wife, Marie Antoinette, I mean Louise Linton looking like Bond villains as they pose with money that will have his name.
Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Mnuchin and wife, Marie Antoinette, I mean Louise Linton looking like Bond villains as they pose with money that will have his name.
Politically correct radical liberals lose their minds over white actresses on a magazine
The Huffington Post, overly sensitive politically correct liberals, and radical feminists have freaked out over the cover of the Los Angeles Times section The Envelope which featured white actresses. (Tweet and comment below.) Kate Harding tweeted,
Really? A couple of things, Ms. Harding and radicals. The article for the magazine is the view of top actresses in recent movies about the treatment of women in cinema. They just happen to be white. Yes, the Huffington Post points out that there are women of color that could have been added. So what? It's the opinion of the editor that these women have excellent chances at Oscar nominations. Do we need a quota for an opinion of talent? Second, being in a picture with only white women does not mean that any of these actresses are against diversity. Don't blame them.
I imagine that some of these women on the cover are liberal. At least I can say that for Jessica Chastain. (Wikipedia) Radical feminists and liberals should not eat their own. I'm a liberal and the cover didn't bother me. If you want more diversity in cinema then cast more people of color in parts. But no quota on judging what is top talent.
It is almost 2018. If you're a white woman and someone asks you to pose for a group picture, for a magazine cover, with only other white women, YOU SAY NO. https://t.co/XYn1xq9j96
— Kate Harding (@KateHarding) December 22, 2017
Really? A couple of things, Ms. Harding and radicals. The article for the magazine is the view of top actresses in recent movies about the treatment of women in cinema. They just happen to be white. Yes, the Huffington Post points out that there are women of color that could have been added. So what? It's the opinion of the editor that these women have excellent chances at Oscar nominations. Do we need a quota for an opinion of talent? Second, being in a picture with only white women does not mean that any of these actresses are against diversity. Don't blame them.
It shouldn’t be necessary to point out the obvious, but clearly it’s necessary to point out the obvious. pic.twitter.com/FQjLkBiaMy
— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) December 22, 2017
I imagine that some of these women on the cover are liberal. At least I can say that for Jessica Chastain. (Wikipedia) Radical feminists and liberals should not eat their own. I'm a liberal and the cover didn't bother me. If you want more diversity in cinema then cast more people of color in parts. But no quota on judging what is top talent.
Conservative Trump to rich people, "You all just got a lot richer" ; Princess Ivanka shows she's an idiot
Republican President Trump told his rich friends at Mar-a-Lago, "You all just got a lot richer." That's an admission that his Republican tax law would benefit the rich. (Huffington Post) And yes, while the poor and middle class will see tax cuts, it won't kick them up out of their economic class.
So who does the conservative Republican tax law benefit the most? The rich. (Politifact) Corporations will see rates go down from 35 percent to 21 percent. IF you're poor or on lower end of the middle class, you may see a reduction of .7 to 1.1 percent. If you are in the top bracket that is making over one million you'll get a whopping 14 percent reduction in your taxes. And good luck to the poor in eight years because that's when your tax cut evaporates while the corporate rate will stay.
And a couple of days ago, Trump's daughter who I'll call "Princess" Ivanka showed the world she is an idiot. She told Trump State TV... er, Fox News that in April you'll be able to do the tax return on a postcard and see the cuts. Wrong. (Politifact) You won't see the cuts for the year 2017 but 2018. And you will not be filing your return on a postcard. Maybe I shouldn't call Princess Ivanka an idiot. She could be just like her old man. A liar. We need a laugh here. Actress and singer, Maya Rudolph does a pretty funny Ivanka. Check it out when she was on Late Night with Seth Myers.
So who does the conservative Republican tax law benefit the most? The rich. (Politifact) Corporations will see rates go down from 35 percent to 21 percent. IF you're poor or on lower end of the middle class, you may see a reduction of .7 to 1.1 percent. If you are in the top bracket that is making over one million you'll get a whopping 14 percent reduction in your taxes. And good luck to the poor in eight years because that's when your tax cut evaporates while the corporate rate will stay.
And a couple of days ago, Trump's daughter who I'll call "Princess" Ivanka showed the world she is an idiot. She told Trump State TV... er, Fox News that in April you'll be able to do the tax return on a postcard and see the cuts. Wrong. (Politifact) You won't see the cuts for the year 2017 but 2018. And you will not be filing your return on a postcard. Maybe I shouldn't call Princess Ivanka an idiot. She could be just like her old man. A liar. We need a laugh here. Actress and singer, Maya Rudolph does a pretty funny Ivanka. Check it out when she was on Late Night with Seth Myers.
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Star Wars: The Last Jedi review
After seeing a character survive being in space without a spacesuit in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, we can say the Star Wars franchise is not science fiction. You can call it science fantasy. Keep that in mind, fans of hard science fiction when you watch this film.
The movie picks up where Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) left off. General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) is leading the Resistance in an escape from their base. However, they can't escape the Empire... I mean the First Order who have a way to track the rebel fleet even if they make the jump to hyperspace. Meanwhile, Rey (Daisy Ridley) has made contact with Luke Skywalker. (Mark Hamill) Pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Issac), Finn (John Boyega) and new character Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) come up with an unauthorized plan to free the fleet from the First Order's tracking device. Rose and Finn would go to a space casino and enlist an expert to sabotage said tracking device. Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), a master of the dark side of the force and hence evil is running around trying to please Emperor er... Superme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis). He detects a disturbance in the force that's either Rey or Skywalker or both.
It's good to hear Mark Hamill finally speak! It was a rip-off in The Force Awakens when Hamill merely shows himself. Anyway, Hamill as Skywalker is excellent as the weary and depressed Luke Skywalker. He's worn down by big failure which I won't spoil. The other performances also shine. Oscar Iassac as Poe, John Boyega as Finn and Carrie Fisher in her last film know their characters well and you readily believe them and their actions. Snoke is your generic power hungry dictator but Andy Serkis makes him bleed evil.
Writer and director Rian Johnson does a fine job staging large action set pieces. The editing and lighting are some of the weaknesses in this movie. Again, as in most modern cinema there's an over reliance on fast cutting to convey excitement. This leads to confusion and motion sickness. Then Johnson's lighting at times is too dark. I really wanted a clearer view of the actors faces even in caves. But the biggest strength and problem with The Last Jedi is the screenplay. First, here's he good part of the story. It's original. There's a nice touch of humor and I liked how Johnson depicts the Force as a metaphysical power.
The big problem in Johnson's screenplay nearly throttles the movie. It is that his story has too many plot threads. The Force Awakens introduced new... ahem, younger characters and there is the fact that Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill's days of "galloping around the cosmos" are nearing their end. (That quote comes from Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan) These final three films after the original trilogy should be mostly about them. Yes, I know Star Wars creator George Lucas thought about doing movies about the old Luke, Leia and Han. (Wikipedia) But while the three actors are still alive, everybody is going to wonder what happened to them in the future. Fisher has since passed away. While introducing a couple of new characters is a great idea, introducing six (Rey, Finn, Poe, BB-8, Ren, Rose) is too much. You could see Johnson looking for scenes to feature all of them. To be frank, giving Poe and Finn separate plot threads took away from the Rey-Luke relationship. And it got worse. At the casino, Johnson introduces DJ played by Benicio Del Toro. He's a great actor but his hamming for the the camera ate up even more time that could have been used for the Rey-Luke plot thread.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is an original, entertaining but flawed movie. It's worth seeing if you are a Star Wars fan. Though hard science fiction fans won't enjoy it as much since they're probably going to wonder with all those hull breaches in space how any person can not be immediately killed. The grade is B.
The movie picks up where Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) left off. General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) is leading the Resistance in an escape from their base. However, they can't escape the Empire... I mean the First Order who have a way to track the rebel fleet even if they make the jump to hyperspace. Meanwhile, Rey (Daisy Ridley) has made contact with Luke Skywalker. (Mark Hamill) Pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Issac), Finn (John Boyega) and new character Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) come up with an unauthorized plan to free the fleet from the First Order's tracking device. Rose and Finn would go to a space casino and enlist an expert to sabotage said tracking device. Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), a master of the dark side of the force and hence evil is running around trying to please Emperor er... Superme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis). He detects a disturbance in the force that's either Rey or Skywalker or both.
It's good to hear Mark Hamill finally speak! It was a rip-off in The Force Awakens when Hamill merely shows himself. Anyway, Hamill as Skywalker is excellent as the weary and depressed Luke Skywalker. He's worn down by big failure which I won't spoil. The other performances also shine. Oscar Iassac as Poe, John Boyega as Finn and Carrie Fisher in her last film know their characters well and you readily believe them and their actions. Snoke is your generic power hungry dictator but Andy Serkis makes him bleed evil.
Writer and director Rian Johnson does a fine job staging large action set pieces. The editing and lighting are some of the weaknesses in this movie. Again, as in most modern cinema there's an over reliance on fast cutting to convey excitement. This leads to confusion and motion sickness. Then Johnson's lighting at times is too dark. I really wanted a clearer view of the actors faces even in caves. But the biggest strength and problem with The Last Jedi is the screenplay. First, here's he good part of the story. It's original. There's a nice touch of humor and I liked how Johnson depicts the Force as a metaphysical power.
The big problem in Johnson's screenplay nearly throttles the movie. It is that his story has too many plot threads. The Force Awakens introduced new... ahem, younger characters and there is the fact that Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill's days of "galloping around the cosmos" are nearing their end. (That quote comes from Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan) These final three films after the original trilogy should be mostly about them. Yes, I know Star Wars creator George Lucas thought about doing movies about the old Luke, Leia and Han. (Wikipedia) But while the three actors are still alive, everybody is going to wonder what happened to them in the future. Fisher has since passed away. While introducing a couple of new characters is a great idea, introducing six (Rey, Finn, Poe, BB-8, Ren, Rose) is too much. You could see Johnson looking for scenes to feature all of them. To be frank, giving Poe and Finn separate plot threads took away from the Rey-Luke relationship. And it got worse. At the casino, Johnson introduces DJ played by Benicio Del Toro. He's a great actor but his hamming for the the camera ate up even more time that could have been used for the Rey-Luke plot thread.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is an original, entertaining but flawed movie. It's worth seeing if you are a Star Wars fan. Though hard science fiction fans won't enjoy it as much since they're probably going to wonder with all those hull breaches in space how any person can not be immediately killed. The grade is B.
Monday, December 18, 2017
Department of Defense: UFOs exist!
Okay, can somebody explain why the Air Force terminated Project Blue Book in 1970 which investigated UFOs when we have just found out that the Department of Defense has spent 22 million dollars investigating them. (Politico. New York Times ) The program was called The Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Program. (AATIP) What we know is that the UFOs studied had far "greater capabilities far beyond what is currently considered aerodynamically possible." Some sightings were compiled by military pilots. Check out the ABC video below where two Navy fighter pilots photograph a UFO and listen to their stunned responses. (At the forty second mark.)
I'm not a crazy conspiracy guy. But let's face it. We need consider that the United States government knows much more about this than they release to the public. The Truth is Out There.
I'm not a crazy conspiracy guy. But let's face it. We need consider that the United States government knows much more about this than they release to the public. The Truth is Out There.
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
Omarosa to leave the White House
Former Apprentice star and President Trump employee is resigning. (Deadline report.) And I say employee because nobody knows what she does in the White House. (Daily Beast.) What I do know is that she once said, "Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump." (The Hill.) I say to her. We in the resistance, refuse to bow to tyrants.
Anyway, James Corden of The Late Late Show also wondered what Omarosa was doing in the White House. Here's his funny piece.
Anyway, James Corden of The Late Late Show also wondered what Omarosa was doing in the White House. Here's his funny piece.
Hope comes from Alabama
I don't know how long the victorious Democrat Doug Jones will be able to hold onto the Alabama Senate seat past 2020. But what I do know is that the people of Alabama rejected conservative Roy Moore who is pro-slavery. Check out his support about getting rid of the Civil War Amendments, the Thirteenth which abolishes slavery. CNN Kfile Yesterday, the voters told conservative Republican Donald Trump and GOP that they don't support their pedophile candidate. (Washington Post) Score one for justice.
And let me say this to the rural poor people of Alabama. The conservative Republicans hate Medicaid. They are not on your side whether it's healthcare or taxes or climate change. Your existence is at stake if you continue to vote for conservative Republicans. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
And let me say this to the rural poor people of Alabama. The conservative Republicans hate Medicaid. They are not on your side whether it's healthcare or taxes or climate change. Your existence is at stake if you continue to vote for conservative Republicans. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Tuesday, December 12, 2017
Conservative President Trump implies female Senator might resort to sex to get contributions
Republican President Trump tweeted that New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand would beg for campaign contributions and "would do anything" for them. (Huffington Post; Trump's tweet below.) Trump is implying that a female senator might resort to sex to get money. And before you say I'm reading too much into this, just read the plain language and decipher the dog whistle here. The phrase "do anything" means well, do anything which could include sex. Put that phrase in with the term "beg" for contributions and you have a sick Trump fantasy.
And one more thing. The women on today's Morning Joe (MSNBC) believe the same thing. That's Elise Jordan who worked for Republican Sen. Rand Paul. (R-KY) and Katty Kay. Mika Brzezinski tears into Trump and states exactly what he implied. (At the 5:00 mark, video embedded with Mediaite report.)
“Let’s just say it. He’s suggesting that Kirsten Gillibrand would have sex with him in order to get campaign contributions, the president actually tweeted that this morning.” Mika Brzezinski.
Lightweight Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a total flunky for Chuck Schumer and someone who would come to my office “begging” for campaign contributions not so long ago (and would do anything for them), is now in the ring fighting against Trump. Very disloyal to Bill & Crooked-USED!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 12, 2017
And one more thing. The women on today's Morning Joe (MSNBC) believe the same thing. That's Elise Jordan who worked for Republican Sen. Rand Paul. (R-KY) and Katty Kay. Mika Brzezinski tears into Trump and states exactly what he implied. (At the 5:00 mark, video embedded with Mediaite report.)
“Let’s just say it. He’s suggesting that Kirsten Gillibrand would have sex with him in order to get campaign contributions, the president actually tweeted that this morning.” Mika Brzezinski.
Conservative Republicans want to divert public from Special Counsel Mueller's search for the truth
There's a new strategy from conservative Republicans to defeat Special Counsel's investigation into the Trump-Russia conspiracy. Accuse Mueller's team of being politically tainted. It should be noted that the FBI agent who came under fire for texting anti-Trump rhetoric was sacked last summer. (Huffington Post) Oh, by the way conservatives be careful for what you wish for. Accusing a prosecutor of not being in your political party is not a defense. If Trump makes it one, this defense could be used nationwide.
Folks, let's go over the score. Shall we? The Hillary Clinton Email "scandal." Zero charges. (L.A. Times) Trump-Russia Conspiracy. Two indictments and two guilty pleas.
That indicates to America that's there's quite a bit of trouble with conservative Republican President Trump and his relationship with Russia. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Folks, let's go over the score. Shall we? The Hillary Clinton Email "scandal." Zero charges. (L.A. Times) Trump-Russia Conspiracy. Two indictments and two guilty pleas.
That indicates to America that's there's quite a bit of trouble with conservative Republican President Trump and his relationship with Russia. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Thursday, December 7, 2017
How justice will prevail if Trump tries to pardon his way out of trouble
To paraphrase Sun Tzu, "know your enemy" when it comes to conservative President Trump's strategies to combat Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe and possible charges. And after hearing about son Donald Jr.'s bizarre assertion of attorney-client privilege in regards to his conversations with his father and refusing to answer some questions , we should examine the president's strongest defenses. Once we see then, we can also see a way to counter them. So, there is hope the blonde hair, orange skin tyrant can be brought to justice. Trump may try two defenses. One, he fires Mueller. Two, he pardons his son-in-law and White House adviser Jared Kushner, Donald Jr. and maybe himself. There could be others he may try to pardon.
First, Trump may try to fire Mueller. I don't think he would try this. He has already fired FBI James Comey for that "Russia thing." (CNN) It would become crystal clear that he would be doing so to obstruct justice. It's the Saturday Night Massacre all over again. Even with the Republicans in control, there is probably going to be enough of them in the House to join the Democrats to vote for impeachment. And it's quite possible that a new special counsel could be just as dedicated as Mueller is.
The second is for Trump to try to pardon his way out. Looking at his history, this seems most likely. Remember that Trump's businesses filed for bankruptcy four times. For Trump, the power to pardon under the Constitution is like filing for bankruptcy to extinguish his debts. He could save Jared Kushner and Donald Jr. from criminal jeopardy. And if you think Trump won't rescue them then you should learn how to spell nepotism. Heck, he might also try pardoning himself.
Yes, the power to pardon is powerful. But it's not the perfect get out of jail card that Trump might think it is. First, and most important, the power to pardon cannot be used to stop an impeachment. Yes, Congress can still remove Trump. And isn't that what we really want? Second, even if Trump pardons Kushner and his son then they would be exposed to testifying at any hearing. There is no Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination if they no longer are in danger of being criminally prosecuted.
Trump's power to pardon does not stop state prosecutions. Remember that Trump Jr.'s meeting to get dirt on Hillary Clinton occurred in New York at Trump Tower. In this excellent NBC News web article, former White House prosecutor Nick Akerman points out that possession of hacked emails is a crime in New York. And here's something that's going to cause Trump to puke his Kentucky Fried chicken. Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn not only agreed to help with Mueller but also pursuant to his plea agreement, he's got to help out on the state level. Lawfare It's a brilliant move by Mueller. He's inoculated the Russia investigation from ending by Trump's pardon power. It should be noted that there is reporting that Mueller is already working with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. See Politico.
It might be "up to you New York." Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" below. By the way, Nancy Sinatra says late father, would never support Trump since he's a bigot. (Teen Vogue) Amen.
First, Trump may try to fire Mueller. I don't think he would try this. He has already fired FBI James Comey for that "Russia thing." (CNN) It would become crystal clear that he would be doing so to obstruct justice. It's the Saturday Night Massacre all over again. Even with the Republicans in control, there is probably going to be enough of them in the House to join the Democrats to vote for impeachment. And it's quite possible that a new special counsel could be just as dedicated as Mueller is.
The second is for Trump to try to pardon his way out. Looking at his history, this seems most likely. Remember that Trump's businesses filed for bankruptcy four times. For Trump, the power to pardon under the Constitution is like filing for bankruptcy to extinguish his debts. He could save Jared Kushner and Donald Jr. from criminal jeopardy. And if you think Trump won't rescue them then you should learn how to spell nepotism. Heck, he might also try pardoning himself.
Yes, the power to pardon is powerful. But it's not the perfect get out of jail card that Trump might think it is. First, and most important, the power to pardon cannot be used to stop an impeachment. Yes, Congress can still remove Trump. And isn't that what we really want? Second, even if Trump pardons Kushner and his son then they would be exposed to testifying at any hearing. There is no Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination if they no longer are in danger of being criminally prosecuted.
Trump's power to pardon does not stop state prosecutions. Remember that Trump Jr.'s meeting to get dirt on Hillary Clinton occurred in New York at Trump Tower. In this excellent NBC News web article, former White House prosecutor Nick Akerman points out that possession of hacked emails is a crime in New York. And here's something that's going to cause Trump to puke his Kentucky Fried chicken. Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn not only agreed to help with Mueller but also pursuant to his plea agreement, he's got to help out on the state level. Lawfare It's a brilliant move by Mueller. He's inoculated the Russia investigation from ending by Trump's pardon power. It should be noted that there is reporting that Mueller is already working with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. See Politico.
It might be "up to you New York." Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" below. By the way, Nancy Sinatra says late father, would never support Trump since he's a bigot. (Teen Vogue) Amen.
Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Stephen Colbert: Melania Trump responds to Ivana Trump
Last week, Stephen Colbert on Late Night ran a funny skit where Melania Trump responds to Ivana Trump's (Donald's first wife) public disrespect. Melania is played by the talented and lovely Laura Benanti. Check out the video below.
Sunday, December 3, 2017
Lady Bird review
At Rotten Tomatoes film review site, the movie Lady Bird is averaging at 100%. Dictators running for re-election don't get that approval, well except for Kim Jong Un. My favorite film, Casablanca (1942) scores at 97 %. Maybe it's not fair to compare the two. One is a romantic drama during the dark times of World War II and the other is a coming of age, slice of American life film at the dark times of the George W. Bush administration. Sorry, I know that's political but in the background of Lady Bird, somebody is watching news of the Iraq War.
We're introduced to Christine McPherson (Saoirse Ronan) and her mother, Marion (Laurie Metcalf) driving in their car and listening to John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath. Yeah, that's their shared enjoyment. Christine likes to call herself, "Lady Bird" because that's what artsy high school kids do. Marion is loving but judgmental. She also wants her daughter to go to UC Davis, primarily because it's cheap. Lady Bird wants to go to an East Coast school like Yale or Columbia in New York. Hold on. What's wrong with Sacramento, California? Do you know how big the cockroaches in New York are?
But I digress. The movie shows Lady Bird's life at her Catholic high school, and her relationships with her friends and her mother. Then one day a giant mutated spider attacks the school. Lady Bird becomes a superhero because she's actually half-eagle. Um... okay that stuff about giant mutated spider and Lady Bird becoming a superhero is not in the film. It's basically about Lady Bird's life as a high school girl dealing with premarital sex, her friends, mother and her desire to get out of Sacramento to go to an East Coast college.
Saoirse Ronan is excellent as the colorful, teenage dreamer, Lady Bird. Laurie Metcalf turns in an Oscar winning performance as Lady Bird's mother. She's strict, judgmental but is loving in her own way. Life has been tough on Laurie. The McPhersons are financially struggling and literally live on the wrong side of the tracks. Yet, there is enough generosity of spirit for Lady Bird's father Larry (Tracy Letts) and Laurie to adopt two other children.
Director and writer Greta Gerwig has made a warm, and funny movie. It's clear she's writing about what she knows. It's life in Sacramento. Unless Ms. Gerwig had giant mutated spiders attack her Catholic high school. The dialogue in the screenplay sounds like what people would say in real life. The jokes work too. I enjoyed following Lady Bird's journey. The film has small imperfections like the need for better exposition. For example, there was some confusion as to what exactly Lady Bird told her rich friend about living in a dream house, and Sacramento should have been a bigger influence on their lives. The movie played too small. Not all small films play that way. Little Miss Sunshine (2006) was not an epic yet it had big ideas.
Your enjoyment of Lady Bird might depend on your memory of high school. There were things I liked about high school and there were painful memories. This is a cinematic slice of life. The grade is B Plus.
We're introduced to Christine McPherson (Saoirse Ronan) and her mother, Marion (Laurie Metcalf) driving in their car and listening to John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath. Yeah, that's their shared enjoyment. Christine likes to call herself, "Lady Bird" because that's what artsy high school kids do. Marion is loving but judgmental. She also wants her daughter to go to UC Davis, primarily because it's cheap. Lady Bird wants to go to an East Coast school like Yale or Columbia in New York. Hold on. What's wrong with Sacramento, California? Do you know how big the cockroaches in New York are?
But I digress. The movie shows Lady Bird's life at her Catholic high school, and her relationships with her friends and her mother. Then one day a giant mutated spider attacks the school. Lady Bird becomes a superhero because she's actually half-eagle. Um... okay that stuff about giant mutated spider and Lady Bird becoming a superhero is not in the film. It's basically about Lady Bird's life as a high school girl dealing with premarital sex, her friends, mother and her desire to get out of Sacramento to go to an East Coast college.
Saoirse Ronan is excellent as the colorful, teenage dreamer, Lady Bird. Laurie Metcalf turns in an Oscar winning performance as Lady Bird's mother. She's strict, judgmental but is loving in her own way. Life has been tough on Laurie. The McPhersons are financially struggling and literally live on the wrong side of the tracks. Yet, there is enough generosity of spirit for Lady Bird's father Larry (Tracy Letts) and Laurie to adopt two other children.
Director and writer Greta Gerwig has made a warm, and funny movie. It's clear she's writing about what she knows. It's life in Sacramento. Unless Ms. Gerwig had giant mutated spiders attack her Catholic high school. The dialogue in the screenplay sounds like what people would say in real life. The jokes work too. I enjoyed following Lady Bird's journey. The film has small imperfections like the need for better exposition. For example, there was some confusion as to what exactly Lady Bird told her rich friend about living in a dream house, and Sacramento should have been a bigger influence on their lives. The movie played too small. Not all small films play that way. Little Miss Sunshine (2006) was not an epic yet it had big ideas.
Your enjoyment of Lady Bird might depend on your memory of high school. There were things I liked about high school and there were painful memories. This is a cinematic slice of life. The grade is B Plus.
Saturday, December 2, 2017
Flynn pleads guilty to only one count of lying to FBI which means bad news to the White House
Former National Security Adviser Gen. Michael Flynn pled guilty to admitting to lying to the FBI. Here's the truth. Flynn did talk to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about lifting the Obama sanctions placed on the Russians for interference in our election. Flynn obviously lied about that. This is now about Russia, President Trump. It was never a hoax as you put it. Now we have to find out if this was about paying the Russians back for assistance to the Trump campaign. As we know, Fynn's legal team has stopped working with the Trump legal team. That's a sign that Flynn may have flipped. And that could have happened months ago.
Note that Special Counsel Robert Mueller had Flynn plead to only one count. And before you say, "That's it?" Note that Flynn was an agent for the Turkish government and that he failed to report that. There's more we don't know about. Remember that Trump went to great effort to get fired FBI Director Comey to drop investigating Flynn. Something that I feel proud blogging about as I put the Trump-Comey meetings together. (My post.) Note that Trump has contact with Comey virtually every time that there was a Flynn event. And the point was to pressure Comey to let Flynn go. If Mueller could get Flynn for more, why didn't he? Because folks, he's cooperating. That's why Trump wants Comey to let go of Flynn. He knows too much.
This is all bad news for Trump. There's very few people higher than Flynn if he's cooperating. Hmm. Let's see. Vice President Pence. I haven't heard much about him so not much to say here. Son Donald Jr. Big time contact with Russians in June of 2016. Meeting with Russians to get dirt on Hillary Clinton with the knowledge that Russia was helping the campaign. And yeah, you may say these Russians were not connected with the Russian government. But they still wanted the help. It' s like robbing a bank and finding out that there's no money there. it's still illegal and an attempt. Next big fish. White House adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Remember he tried to set up a back channel with the Russians to defeat the FBI and CIA. He was also at the June meeting with the Russians. And of course, the big orange himself, Conservative President Donald Trump.
Remember, folks. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Stephanie Ruhle's MSNBC report
Note that Special Counsel Robert Mueller had Flynn plead to only one count. And before you say, "That's it?" Note that Flynn was an agent for the Turkish government and that he failed to report that. There's more we don't know about. Remember that Trump went to great effort to get fired FBI Director Comey to drop investigating Flynn. Something that I feel proud blogging about as I put the Trump-Comey meetings together. (My post.) Note that Trump has contact with Comey virtually every time that there was a Flynn event. And the point was to pressure Comey to let Flynn go. If Mueller could get Flynn for more, why didn't he? Because folks, he's cooperating. That's why Trump wants Comey to let go of Flynn. He knows too much.
This is all bad news for Trump. There's very few people higher than Flynn if he's cooperating. Hmm. Let's see. Vice President Pence. I haven't heard much about him so not much to say here. Son Donald Jr. Big time contact with Russians in June of 2016. Meeting with Russians to get dirt on Hillary Clinton with the knowledge that Russia was helping the campaign. And yeah, you may say these Russians were not connected with the Russian government. But they still wanted the help. It' s like robbing a bank and finding out that there's no money there. it's still illegal and an attempt. Next big fish. White House adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Remember he tried to set up a back channel with the Russians to defeat the FBI and CIA. He was also at the June meeting with the Russians. And of course, the big orange himself, Conservative President Donald Trump.
Remember, folks. Vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Stephanie Ruhle's MSNBC report
Friday, December 1, 2017
Conservative Republicans tax plan is literally being hand written and will add 1. trillion to deficit
Conservative Republicans tax plan will add 1 trillion that's trillion not billion to the deficit. That's according to the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation. (New York Times Report.) What hypocrisy! Conservatives have been such deficit hawks and now they plan to add to our children and grandchildren's debts. Now so they can give the big rich tax breaks, they don't care.
And at this time. Conservative Republicans are literally hand writing changes to the tax bill. I'm guessing it's going to pass. Folks, these conservatives will pass significant legislation with freaking handwritten notes on the side. Huffington Post. Stop this nonsense now. Call your congressman. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
And at this time. Conservative Republicans are literally hand writing changes to the tax bill. I'm guessing it's going to pass. Folks, these conservatives will pass significant legislation with freaking handwritten notes on the side. Huffington Post. Stop this nonsense now. Call your congressman. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Thursday, November 30, 2017
The Avengers: Infinity War trailer
It's here. The first trailer for The Avengers: Infinity War. Oh, the hair that you see on Peter Parker's arm rising is his Spidey Sense. Wow. That's a lot of superheroes. Memo to Danny Elfman. Alan Silvestri's Avengers motif is how you write a superhero theme. Epic. Bold. Graceful. Note that Silvestri studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Can't wait for this movie.
Seth Meyers: Conservative Republicans will raise taxes on the poor
Seth Meyers in yesterday's Closer Look on Late Night explains that the conservative Republican tax plan will raise taxes on the working people and the poor. This will happen in future years. Forbes. Check out the video below. (4:50 regarding the increase on the working and the poor) The point is that the raises are to make up for the nice tax cuts for the rich and corporations.
If you are a working man and or poor, contact your congressman now and ask them to kill the bill. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
If you are a working man and or poor, contact your congressman now and ask them to kill the bill. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Keith Olbermann signs off
Political commentator Keith Olbermann has done his last video for the GQ sponsored series The Resistance. Over the last year, Olbermann has been pretty accurate about President Trump. Remember when he did a piece where he projects that General Michael Flynn has flipped ? (May video.) Well, it looks like he just did or flipped in the past. Anyway, in the below video, Olbermann predicts that President Donald Trump will not complete his first term.
America thanks you, Keith. Viva la resistance. Impeach Trump now. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
America thanks you, Keith. Viva la resistance. Impeach Trump now. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Justice League review
I'm betting that executives with Marvel Studios are happy that they got most of their cinematic universe out years before DC Comics and Warner put out this month's Justice League. That's because Marvel's Avengers (2012) movie and Justice League basically have the same plot. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the franchise that the studio calls it, there are these things called Infinity Stones which are magical and of course, bad guys want them. Not to be outdone, Justice League has magical boxes?!
Justice League takes place after the events in Batman v. Superman: The Dawn of Justice (2016). While busting a criminal, Batman aka Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) runs into an alien scout. Sensing this is the start of an invasion as told to him by Lex Luthor in Batman v. Superman, Wayne starts to recruit superheroes to defend the planet. Wonder Women aka Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) receives a warning from her mother Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen) that Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds' voice) has come back to earth to retrieve the three magic boxes on earth and use their power to perform "Born to be Wild." Um... sorry. That's from the rock band Stepppenwolf. he wants to conquer the universe.
Bruce Wayne meanwhile goes around the planet to recruit his team. Wonder Woman tells Wayne of the threat. She joins. He wants to get Flash aka Barry Allen (Ezra Miller), Aquaman aka the man who sleeps with the fishes. Er... okay, that's Aquaman (Jason Momoa) aka Arthur Curry as the man who talks to the fishes and Cyborg aka Victor Stone (Ray Fisher). The band forms and they set off to tour the country doing Steppenwolf covers. Um... no. They set off to stop Steppenwolf from getting the magic boxes.
This should all sound familiar. It's pretty much the plot to Marvel's The Avengers. (2012) Both had super villains seeking magic "MacGuffins". The super villain uses said MacGuffin to conquer the world along with his army of cute, yellow minions. Sorry, they're supposed to be evil minions not the cute ones. So, this movie Justice League has to be as good as its competitors, the Avengers. Unfortunately, it's not. And stop rejoicing Marvel comic book fans. Need I remind you of Iron Man 2 and Iron Man 3?
There are problems with this film. The screenplay by Chris Terrio, and Joss Whedon is uneven in how it does the backstories of the superheroes. That was a problem with Suicide Squad. (2016) Sometimes, these forays are contrived or they stop the drama. There's no reason to have Wonder Woman still "pining" after the late Steve Trevor. (Chris Pine in this year's Wonder Woman) Bad pun, I know. But really, Trevor has been dead for about one hundred years. Through the decades, I mean Prince could have had dates with Clark Gable, John Wayne, or Rock Hudson. Strike the date with Rock Hudson. Speaking of gay, she could have become a lesbian and then we could have a scene that would satisfy the radical feminist criteria for the Bechdel Test which requires a scene where two women are talking to each other and the subject cannot be about men. God forbid. Do aliens count in a conversation? Anyway, we already know about Wonder Woman's past from the earlier movie.
But I digress. Cyborg's origin was not compelling. Maybe we needed to see the tragic accident that killed his mother. We know very little of Aquaman or why he's so grouchy. Well, actually we do know why he's pissed off. He never gets respect. I mean he's seen in cartoons riding seahorses and of course, he talks to fishes. That's kind of goofy. And it doesn't help that the show Family Guy skewers him as being lame when he can't really do anything out of the water. (Video below.)
I guess that's why they cast Jason Momoa as Aquaman. Rather than an Aryan looking blonde, he's like a Polynesian biker.
Then there are the plot holes, villain development and exposition problems. Other than he wants to take over the universe, we don't have a lot of motivation for Steppenwolf. That makes him a black and white character. It's not very interesting. And as the trailer shows, Superman (Henry Cavill) makes an appearance. Okay, but if you watched Batman v. Superman, the last scene indicates Superman is not dead but perhaps is in a dormant state. Okay. So how the movie shows the appearance of Superman doesn't jibe with it. Plus Superman's behavior when he appears is not explained. Then without spoiling the movie, let me just say that Steppenwolf's minions aren't happiest of employees. Yet, their motivations are not explained.
Another problem is Danny Elfman's musical score. I'm not usually a fan of Elfman. I find his melodies in other films to be musical mcnuggets. No long melodies. Perhaps it's his rock and roll background. But in this movie, I can't remember any original melodies. That doesn't help. For example, there is a scene where Aquaman saves the team. It badly needed a strong original theme for inspiration. Elfman does use his 1989 Batman theme and the legendary 1978 Superman theme by John Williams. That's good but then he uses them as whispers rather then heroic statements that would give you goose bumps when you hear them.
As for the cast, they're all good. But one performance stands out. It's Ezra Miller's Flash. He steals the movie or should I say he runs off with the film. He's got that awkward, geeky delivery that demonstrates superhero worship and naivete. Kudos to him and the writers for creating a likable and funny character.
It should be noted that Joss Whedon also directed The Avengers. In Justice League, he has crafted a movie with exciting and heroic set pieces but the weaknesses of the script makes a shallow film. Justice League is just a big budget, live action Saturday morning cartoon. The grade is B.
Justice League takes place after the events in Batman v. Superman: The Dawn of Justice (2016). While busting a criminal, Batman aka Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) runs into an alien scout. Sensing this is the start of an invasion as told to him by Lex Luthor in Batman v. Superman, Wayne starts to recruit superheroes to defend the planet. Wonder Women aka Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) receives a warning from her mother Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen) that Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds' voice) has come back to earth to retrieve the three magic boxes on earth and use their power to perform "Born to be Wild." Um... sorry. That's from the rock band Stepppenwolf. he wants to conquer the universe.
Bruce Wayne meanwhile goes around the planet to recruit his team. Wonder Woman tells Wayne of the threat. She joins. He wants to get Flash aka Barry Allen (Ezra Miller), Aquaman aka the man who sleeps with the fishes. Er... okay, that's Aquaman (Jason Momoa) aka Arthur Curry as the man who talks to the fishes and Cyborg aka Victor Stone (Ray Fisher). The band forms and they set off to tour the country doing Steppenwolf covers. Um... no. They set off to stop Steppenwolf from getting the magic boxes.
This should all sound familiar. It's pretty much the plot to Marvel's The Avengers. (2012) Both had super villains seeking magic "MacGuffins". The super villain uses said MacGuffin to conquer the world along with his army of cute, yellow minions. Sorry, they're supposed to be evil minions not the cute ones. So, this movie Justice League has to be as good as its competitors, the Avengers. Unfortunately, it's not. And stop rejoicing Marvel comic book fans. Need I remind you of Iron Man 2 and Iron Man 3?
There are problems with this film. The screenplay by Chris Terrio, and Joss Whedon is uneven in how it does the backstories of the superheroes. That was a problem with Suicide Squad. (2016) Sometimes, these forays are contrived or they stop the drama. There's no reason to have Wonder Woman still "pining" after the late Steve Trevor. (Chris Pine in this year's Wonder Woman) Bad pun, I know. But really, Trevor has been dead for about one hundred years. Through the decades, I mean Prince could have had dates with Clark Gable, John Wayne, or Rock Hudson. Strike the date with Rock Hudson. Speaking of gay, she could have become a lesbian and then we could have a scene that would satisfy the radical feminist criteria for the Bechdel Test which requires a scene where two women are talking to each other and the subject cannot be about men. God forbid. Do aliens count in a conversation? Anyway, we already know about Wonder Woman's past from the earlier movie.
But I digress. Cyborg's origin was not compelling. Maybe we needed to see the tragic accident that killed his mother. We know very little of Aquaman or why he's so grouchy. Well, actually we do know why he's pissed off. He never gets respect. I mean he's seen in cartoons riding seahorses and of course, he talks to fishes. That's kind of goofy. And it doesn't help that the show Family Guy skewers him as being lame when he can't really do anything out of the water. (Video below.)
I guess that's why they cast Jason Momoa as Aquaman. Rather than an Aryan looking blonde, he's like a Polynesian biker.
Then there are the plot holes, villain development and exposition problems. Other than he wants to take over the universe, we don't have a lot of motivation for Steppenwolf. That makes him a black and white character. It's not very interesting. And as the trailer shows, Superman (Henry Cavill) makes an appearance. Okay, but if you watched Batman v. Superman, the last scene indicates Superman is not dead but perhaps is in a dormant state. Okay. So how the movie shows the appearance of Superman doesn't jibe with it. Plus Superman's behavior when he appears is not explained. Then without spoiling the movie, let me just say that Steppenwolf's minions aren't happiest of employees. Yet, their motivations are not explained.
Another problem is Danny Elfman's musical score. I'm not usually a fan of Elfman. I find his melodies in other films to be musical mcnuggets. No long melodies. Perhaps it's his rock and roll background. But in this movie, I can't remember any original melodies. That doesn't help. For example, there is a scene where Aquaman saves the team. It badly needed a strong original theme for inspiration. Elfman does use his 1989 Batman theme and the legendary 1978 Superman theme by John Williams. That's good but then he uses them as whispers rather then heroic statements that would give you goose bumps when you hear them.
As for the cast, they're all good. But one performance stands out. It's Ezra Miller's Flash. He steals the movie or should I say he runs off with the film. He's got that awkward, geeky delivery that demonstrates superhero worship and naivete. Kudos to him and the writers for creating a likable and funny character.
It should be noted that Joss Whedon also directed The Avengers. In Justice League, he has crafted a movie with exciting and heroic set pieces but the weaknesses of the script makes a shallow film. Justice League is just a big budget, live action Saturday morning cartoon. The grade is B.
Thursday, November 16, 2017
John Oliver: Conservatives and Trump use Russian techniques
In this funny video Emmy Award winning satirist John Oliver demonstrates that President Trump and conservatives use Russian techniques in public debate. And folks, it's not good. Because we're not getting at the truth but are being driven by fear and anger. In the HBO video below, Oliver highlights the three Russian techniques that conservatives and Russians use. Caution: The video contains language and jokes that are mature in nature. Just so you know, the techniques are: 1) Discredit the press; 2) Use of "what about-ism?" and 3) trolling. They are all un-American in their use.
Wednesday, November 15, 2017
Only a moral military can stop President Trump from launching nukes
Here's more for the argument to impeach conservative President Donald Trump. The blonde hair, orange skin demagogue can unilaterally launch nuclear missiles. For example, Trump is mad that Denmark is happier since they have universal healthcare. Hey, that's socialism to him and his right-wing buddies. He decides to nuke them for embarrassing him. Trump does have narcissistic personality disorder. (The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, Edited Dr. Bandy Lee, 2017)
What could stop him? The moral courage of a soldier. They can disobey an immoral order. ( Huffington Post) Let's just hope it doesn't look like the opening scene in WarGames (1983) where two Air Force officers are faced with the decision of launching nuclear missiles. (Video below.)
What could stop him? The moral courage of a soldier. They can disobey an immoral order. ( Huffington Post) Let's just hope it doesn't look like the opening scene in WarGames (1983) where two Air Force officers are faced with the decision of launching nuclear missiles. (Video below.)
The Foreigner review
Adapting a film from a novel can present special problems. Books may not be cinematic. And sometimes, novels can have too much detail that makes it difficult to cram into a movie of two hours long. That seems to be problem with The Foreigner , actor Jackie Chan's latest film.
Jackie Chan plays Quan, a former Vietnamese special forces soldier. who has a "particular set of skills." After the Viet Nam war, he's now living in London as an owner of a gay fundamentalist Baptist bakery. No. I'm kidding about the bakery. He runs a Chinese restaurant. While taking his daughter to a dressmaker, she's killed by a bomb set off by a group called the "Authentic IRA."
Quan wants answers. So he confronts northern Irish government official, Hennessey. (Pierce Brosnan) Hennessy's got a bunch of secrets, one of them was that he was a former member of the IRA. Quan follows Hennessy back to Ireland and "pressures" him for information about his daughter's killers.
Chan's age makes him perfect for this old soldier. His fighting style and stunts are slower and less Buster Keaton. Chan gets to show his acting chops as weary and depressed warrior. Pierce Brosnan gets to let his Irish accent hang out. He's not Bond, James Bond here. His Hennessy is both practical and conniving.
There's one big problem to this film. It's David Marconi's script. You see it's adapted from a novel by Stephen Leather, The Chinaman. I'll admit I didn't read the 1992 book. So, I've got to make some assumptions. First, let's hope the title of the book is satirical. Because being a Chinese American, the term "chinaman" is racist because it was used by bigots as an early racial epithet. But I digress. I'm presuming that the book had much more detail about the political atmosphere of the conflict between the IRA and Great Britain since it was written during the times of armed conflict. That makes turning the novel into a two hour movie difficult. It's hard to put all the political and personal details into a two hour film. Plot threads in The Foreigner are not explained or merely hinted at without any context. For example, people are killed with little or no context. The result is confusion and it makes you not care. This makes the movie an empty experience.
Director Martin Campbell who directed Brosnan in the entertaining Bond movie Goldeneye (1995) which also starred Brosnan has made a dull movie. That's hard to believe with Chan and Brosnan. But given the screenplay, it maybe less of his fault. I mean the climatic confrontation between Quan and the terrorists takes place in cramped apartment. How about a foot chase culminating with Jackie Chan taking down the bad guys mano a mano?
The Foreigner is a strange action movie about IRA terrorism being that the threat of terrorism to Great Britain today comes from those that adhere to a philosophy of radical Islam. But perhaps that's not political correct. This current threat of terrorism would have been more interesting. Or the filmmakers could have fleshed out nebulous and confusing plot threads. Either one would have made The Foreigner a better movie. As it stands here, The Foreigner is not boring but not great. The grade is B Minus.
..
Jackie Chan plays Quan, a former Vietnamese special forces soldier. who has a "particular set of skills." After the Viet Nam war, he's now living in London as an owner of a gay fundamentalist Baptist bakery. No. I'm kidding about the bakery. He runs a Chinese restaurant. While taking his daughter to a dressmaker, she's killed by a bomb set off by a group called the "Authentic IRA."
Quan wants answers. So he confronts northern Irish government official, Hennessey. (Pierce Brosnan) Hennessy's got a bunch of secrets, one of them was that he was a former member of the IRA. Quan follows Hennessy back to Ireland and "pressures" him for information about his daughter's killers.
Chan's age makes him perfect for this old soldier. His fighting style and stunts are slower and less Buster Keaton. Chan gets to show his acting chops as weary and depressed warrior. Pierce Brosnan gets to let his Irish accent hang out. He's not Bond, James Bond here. His Hennessy is both practical and conniving.
There's one big problem to this film. It's David Marconi's script. You see it's adapted from a novel by Stephen Leather, The Chinaman. I'll admit I didn't read the 1992 book. So, I've got to make some assumptions. First, let's hope the title of the book is satirical. Because being a Chinese American, the term "chinaman" is racist because it was used by bigots as an early racial epithet. But I digress. I'm presuming that the book had much more detail about the political atmosphere of the conflict between the IRA and Great Britain since it was written during the times of armed conflict. That makes turning the novel into a two hour movie difficult. It's hard to put all the political and personal details into a two hour film. Plot threads in The Foreigner are not explained or merely hinted at without any context. For example, people are killed with little or no context. The result is confusion and it makes you not care. This makes the movie an empty experience.
Director Martin Campbell who directed Brosnan in the entertaining Bond movie Goldeneye (1995) which also starred Brosnan has made a dull movie. That's hard to believe with Chan and Brosnan. But given the screenplay, it maybe less of his fault. I mean the climatic confrontation between Quan and the terrorists takes place in cramped apartment. How about a foot chase culminating with Jackie Chan taking down the bad guys mano a mano?
The Foreigner is a strange action movie about IRA terrorism being that the threat of terrorism to Great Britain today comes from those that adhere to a philosophy of radical Islam. But perhaps that's not political correct. This current threat of terrorism would have been more interesting. Or the filmmakers could have fleshed out nebulous and confusing plot threads. Either one would have made The Foreigner a better movie. As it stands here, The Foreigner is not boring but not great. The grade is B Minus.
..
Tuesday, November 14, 2017
Thor: Ragnarok review
Does Thor: Ragnarok signal the end of the superhero movie? I say this because I remember the Adam West Batman (1966) movie and the eighties Flash Gordon (1980). Those two films were not serious. Both were campy. And both weren't particularly funny but just goofy. The problem was that they tried to straddle total comedy and some sincere nod to the source material. We would not get a good Batman film until Tim Burton's Batman in 1989. With the large amount of comedy in Thor: Ragnarok, will anyone take Thor or any superhero movie seriously in the future?
Thor: Ragnarok takes place after Thor: The Dark World. (2013) And if you didn't see that movie or The Avengers (2012), you may not get some of the jokes. So, I'm going to spoil a little of those two movies. Anyway, we find Thor (Chris Hemsworth) fighting a big horned creature who says he is going to destroy Asgard. And if you saw the prior Thor, you know that Loki (Mr. Taylor Swift.. er. Tom Hiddleston ) has taken the form of Odin, the ruler of Asgard and is ruling in his place. Thor exposes the ruse in a funny scene if you saw the prior Thor. Loki tells Thor that the real Odin (Anthony Hopkins) is on earth.
The two travel to earth. They find him. And for some reason he dies. This we are told will lead to Hela (Cate Blanchett) coming back. She's the power hungry sister of Thor who wants to rule Asgard, and of course, the universe. That's when all Hela breaks out. She easily defeats Thor and destroys the Mjolnir. What's that you say? You don't know what a Mjolnir is? Geek alert. It's Thor's mighty hammer. Anyway, she sends Thor and Loki to the planet Sakaar. Thor is forced to play in gladiator games for The Grandmaster. (Jeff Goldblum?!) The rest of the movie is about Thor's attempt to get off the planet and save Asgard. On the planet he reunites with the big green guy aka The Hulk that you see in the trailer.
There are two actors having a lot of fun in this movie. It's Cate Blanchett and Jeff Goldblum. Blanchett really hams it up as the all powerful villain. Goldblum is a cross between his Dr. Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park (1993) and Dom Deluise's Nero from History of the World, Part One. (1981) Chris Hemsworth and Mr. Taylor Swift, um... sorry about that, Tom Hiddleston know that they're in a silly superhero movie and they deliver their lines and jokes with hidden winks at the audience.
The screenplay by Eric Pearce, Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost is subversive when it comes to the comic book superhero movie. These guys aren't playing it dark and serious. There are a lot of jokes many of which are self-conscious. Director Taika Waititi goes along with this approach. He knows how to stage a joke and uses bright neon colors as the palette for the movie . The Dark Knight this is not. Their collaborative effort has led to very humorous movie.
Thor: Ragnorok is an entertaining and funny film. Just don't take it seriously. The grade is B Plus.
Thor: Ragnarok takes place after Thor: The Dark World. (2013) And if you didn't see that movie or The Avengers (2012), you may not get some of the jokes. So, I'm going to spoil a little of those two movies. Anyway, we find Thor (Chris Hemsworth) fighting a big horned creature who says he is going to destroy Asgard. And if you saw the prior Thor, you know that Loki (Mr. Taylor Swift.. er. Tom Hiddleston ) has taken the form of Odin, the ruler of Asgard and is ruling in his place. Thor exposes the ruse in a funny scene if you saw the prior Thor. Loki tells Thor that the real Odin (Anthony Hopkins) is on earth.
The two travel to earth. They find him. And for some reason he dies. This we are told will lead to Hela (Cate Blanchett) coming back. She's the power hungry sister of Thor who wants to rule Asgard, and of course, the universe. That's when all Hela breaks out. She easily defeats Thor and destroys the Mjolnir. What's that you say? You don't know what a Mjolnir is? Geek alert. It's Thor's mighty hammer. Anyway, she sends Thor and Loki to the planet Sakaar. Thor is forced to play in gladiator games for The Grandmaster. (Jeff Goldblum?!) The rest of the movie is about Thor's attempt to get off the planet and save Asgard. On the planet he reunites with the big green guy aka The Hulk that you see in the trailer.
There are two actors having a lot of fun in this movie. It's Cate Blanchett and Jeff Goldblum. Blanchett really hams it up as the all powerful villain. Goldblum is a cross between his Dr. Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park (1993) and Dom Deluise's Nero from History of the World, Part One. (1981) Chris Hemsworth and Mr. Taylor Swift, um... sorry about that, Tom Hiddleston know that they're in a silly superhero movie and they deliver their lines and jokes with hidden winks at the audience.
The screenplay by Eric Pearce, Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost is subversive when it comes to the comic book superhero movie. These guys aren't playing it dark and serious. There are a lot of jokes many of which are self-conscious. Director Taika Waititi goes along with this approach. He knows how to stage a joke and uses bright neon colors as the palette for the movie . The Dark Knight this is not. Their collaborative effort has led to very humorous movie.
Thor: Ragnorok is an entertaining and funny film. Just don't take it seriously. The grade is B Plus.
Where's the radical feminist outrage for Thor: Ragnarok?
In a scene from Thor: Ragnarok, there is a shirtless Chris Hemsworth as Thor. He's really cut as they pointed out in the first Thor movie. Beefcake for the ladies and gay guys. You remember the brouhaha for Star Trek Into Darkness's Alice Eve underwear scene? I got in a big fight with a radical feminist and political correct types who accused me of being evil for defending Star Trek's playful sexuality. And I'm a liberal. Well, radical feminists where's your outrage over the shirtless Hemsworth? Isn't that objectification? Yep, the silence is is deafening.
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House review
Sometimes a film will premiere before a real life event which echoes the subject matter in the movie. That happened with The China Syndrome (1979) a movie about a nuclear plant meltdown. Its debut occurred twelve days days before a nuclear power plant accident happened at Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania. Now comes Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House, a film about the Watergate scandal. Just in time for the Trump-Russia scandal.
It's May, 1972. The film opens up with FBI deputy associate director, Mark Felt (Liam Neeson) telling President Nixon's White House counsel John Dean (Micheal C. Hall) and his other men that the FBI has kept secrets and that they are safe with the FBI. Then legendary and controversial Director, J. Edgar Hoover dies. This leads Felt to order the destruction of Hoover's personal files which contain a bunch of dirt. What dirt? The movie doensn't tell you but it's done before President Nixon's people can get it.
In June 1972, burglars break into the Democratic National Committee's headquarters at the Watergate hotel. Some of the perpetrators have FBI and CIA employment histories and are connected to President Nixon's campaign. Acting FBI director. Patrick Gray (Marton Csokas) seems to be under pressure from the White House and Justice Department to clear Nixon and wrap up the investigation before the FBI can get the truth out. Felt decides to leak to the press, specifically reporter Bob Woodward (Julian Morris) of the Washington Post. He becomes a secret source called "Deep Throat." Meanwhile Felt must deal with the disappearance of his daughter and his wife Audrey's (Diane Lane) depression.
Movies based on real life people and events often take dramatic license to tell the story. There are reasons. Time issues. But more importantly, dramatic license allows filmmakers to make a movie that is more cinematic giving it more drive and tension. As long as the the film is substantially correct, I don't see a problem.
Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House really needed more dramatic license. Peter Landesman's script and direction are stodgy and pedestrian. The film does not show the audience the stakes or the danger of what Nixon was trying to get away with. As a result, the performances of the cast were pretty much dry with the exception of Diane Lane's Audrey.
I never got the impression of the risk and need for Felt to leak information to the Washington Post. Yeah, Felt talks about that no one stops an FBI investigation and a metaphor on how corruption can bring down a government. But what is required here, is the importance of a free press and the leaker who believes she or he is doing something right. It's all done to get the truth out. Thank God for the First Amendment's protections of a free press. And it's even more relevant now with the specter of President Trump looking to either fire Special Counsel Bob Mueller or pardon himself out of the Russian scandal. If those things happen then the only way the truth gets out is through the press.
This film could have used a little "corn." There should have been a discussion about the free press and the need to expose Nixon.. A "no man is above the law" speech would have been helpful for dramatic purposes. Daniel Pemberton's score was too much musical wallpaper. Themes would have given the film more emotional weight.
Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House is earnest, relevant and important but it's also arid. One can hope there will be a better movie about Felt made in the future. The film to see about Watergate is All the President's Men. (1976) The grade is B Minus..
It's May, 1972. The film opens up with FBI deputy associate director, Mark Felt (Liam Neeson) telling President Nixon's White House counsel John Dean (Micheal C. Hall) and his other men that the FBI has kept secrets and that they are safe with the FBI. Then legendary and controversial Director, J. Edgar Hoover dies. This leads Felt to order the destruction of Hoover's personal files which contain a bunch of dirt. What dirt? The movie doensn't tell you but it's done before President Nixon's people can get it.
In June 1972, burglars break into the Democratic National Committee's headquarters at the Watergate hotel. Some of the perpetrators have FBI and CIA employment histories and are connected to President Nixon's campaign. Acting FBI director. Patrick Gray (Marton Csokas) seems to be under pressure from the White House and Justice Department to clear Nixon and wrap up the investigation before the FBI can get the truth out. Felt decides to leak to the press, specifically reporter Bob Woodward (Julian Morris) of the Washington Post. He becomes a secret source called "Deep Throat." Meanwhile Felt must deal with the disappearance of his daughter and his wife Audrey's (Diane Lane) depression.
Movies based on real life people and events often take dramatic license to tell the story. There are reasons. Time issues. But more importantly, dramatic license allows filmmakers to make a movie that is more cinematic giving it more drive and tension. As long as the the film is substantially correct, I don't see a problem.
Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House really needed more dramatic license. Peter Landesman's script and direction are stodgy and pedestrian. The film does not show the audience the stakes or the danger of what Nixon was trying to get away with. As a result, the performances of the cast were pretty much dry with the exception of Diane Lane's Audrey.
I never got the impression of the risk and need for Felt to leak information to the Washington Post. Yeah, Felt talks about that no one stops an FBI investigation and a metaphor on how corruption can bring down a government. But what is required here, is the importance of a free press and the leaker who believes she or he is doing something right. It's all done to get the truth out. Thank God for the First Amendment's protections of a free press. And it's even more relevant now with the specter of President Trump looking to either fire Special Counsel Bob Mueller or pardon himself out of the Russian scandal. If those things happen then the only way the truth gets out is through the press.
This film could have used a little "corn." There should have been a discussion about the free press and the need to expose Nixon.. A "no man is above the law" speech would have been helpful for dramatic purposes. Daniel Pemberton's score was too much musical wallpaper. Themes would have given the film more emotional weight.
Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House is earnest, relevant and important but it's also arid. One can hope there will be a better movie about Felt made in the future. The film to see about Watergate is All the President's Men. (1976) The grade is B Minus..
Friday, October 27, 2017
Professor Marston and the Wonder Women review
Did you know that the creator of the comic book Wonder Woman was a feminist man? Or that he had a sexual relationship with two women? How about the fact that he also created the first lie detector machine? Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is the fascinating film about this man Professor William Marston and his two loves, Elizabeth Marston and Olive Byrne.
We meet Professor William Moulton Marston (The Hobbit's Luke Evans) about the year 1946 as he is being interrogated by Josette Frank (Connie Britton) of the Child Study Association for his controversial creation, Wonder Woman. She's upset with the comic book's sexual and bondage themes. Marston defends his work. This interrogation becomes a framing device similar to Cervantes defending his story in Man of La Mancha. The movie flashes back to a time where Marston is teaching psychology and his DISC theory regarding human behavior. (DISC stands for Dominance, Inducement, Submission, Compliance) Watching his class is his wife, Elizabeth. (Rebecca Hall) Also attending is a student, Olive Byrne. (Bella Heathcote)
Marston finds himself enraptured with Byrne. He wants her as a research assistant. Elizabeth immediately sees the sexual attraction that Marston has for her but agrees to allowing Byrne work for him. Their initial work is the development of the lie detector. During the testing of the device all three discover that they have feelings for each other. This leads to a polymorphous relationship.
After losing his job, and with Byrne having given birth to a child, Marston finds the need to support this growing family, But first, he's got to stop by a local lingerie store which is also a front for a bondage group. Well , maybe he doesn't need to shop for lingerie and um... ropes but it turns him on. This leads him to introduce his wife and lover, Olive to some light bondage. Add that with his feminist views, the feminist inspiration from the women in his life and voila, Wonder Woman. He takes the idea to DC Comics and they agree to produce a comic. So, you know where the Lasso of Truth comes from. Don't tell the kids.
The performances of Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall and Bella Heathcote are superb. They all have chemistry with each other, sexual and emotional. Evan's Marston is an idealist. He wants to use the comic book of Wonder Woman to indoctrinate the youth of America to feminism. His passion for feminism is matched by his love for his women. Hall's Elizabeth is a woman who's been educated as a lawyer by must endure sexual discrimination. She's tough but there's also pain in her performance. Heathcote's Olive has a lineage to feminism and liberal ideas. In real life, Olive Byrne was the niece of feminist Margaret Sanger. Bella Heathcote shows a devotion to those ideas. But more importantly, she exudes a telepathic performance. It may seem that Olive is the submissive of the three but she radiates a sexual aura which dominates Elizabeth and Marston.
Writer and director Angela Robinson has created a film that may accurately depict the three and if it doesn't I applaud the ideas of the movie. Granddaughter Christie Marston argues that Elizabeth and Olive were not in a sexual relationship but were more like sisters. (Hollywood Reporter) The relationship of the three was certainly radical for the time and it would be frowned upon now. But this unconventional family is actually conventional in its goals. If Wonder Woman was going to defeat evil by love (Boston University article) then why can't love exist in a family of two women, a man and children? Why can't that love defeat fear and bigotry? Robinson's scenes of the Marston family with evening dinners and playing with children are loving, happy and beautiful. You root for this family.
As for the sex between the three, Robinson projects some of her ideas. First, she physically depicts the lovemaking with hand-held camera shots. There's a slight shake to the picture. This depicts the emotional, nervous and sexual energy between the three. But what about the bondage? Isn't it the objectification of women that radical feminists decry about? No. It's consensual. Robinson seems to show that it is the women who are in charge here. It's a sexual power that motivates men and women.
Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is a warm, loving and yes, family movie that just happens to have a polymorphous relationship with some bondage thrown in. Radical feminists, feminists, comic book fans and movie lovers should see this film. The grade is A.
We meet Professor William Moulton Marston (The Hobbit's Luke Evans) about the year 1946 as he is being interrogated by Josette Frank (Connie Britton) of the Child Study Association for his controversial creation, Wonder Woman. She's upset with the comic book's sexual and bondage themes. Marston defends his work. This interrogation becomes a framing device similar to Cervantes defending his story in Man of La Mancha. The movie flashes back to a time where Marston is teaching psychology and his DISC theory regarding human behavior. (DISC stands for Dominance, Inducement, Submission, Compliance) Watching his class is his wife, Elizabeth. (Rebecca Hall) Also attending is a student, Olive Byrne. (Bella Heathcote)
Marston finds himself enraptured with Byrne. He wants her as a research assistant. Elizabeth immediately sees the sexual attraction that Marston has for her but agrees to allowing Byrne work for him. Their initial work is the development of the lie detector. During the testing of the device all three discover that they have feelings for each other. This leads to a polymorphous relationship.
After losing his job, and with Byrne having given birth to a child, Marston finds the need to support this growing family, But first, he's got to stop by a local lingerie store which is also a front for a bondage group. Well , maybe he doesn't need to shop for lingerie and um... ropes but it turns him on. This leads him to introduce his wife and lover, Olive to some light bondage. Add that with his feminist views, the feminist inspiration from the women in his life and voila, Wonder Woman. He takes the idea to DC Comics and they agree to produce a comic. So, you know where the Lasso of Truth comes from. Don't tell the kids.
The performances of Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall and Bella Heathcote are superb. They all have chemistry with each other, sexual and emotional. Evan's Marston is an idealist. He wants to use the comic book of Wonder Woman to indoctrinate the youth of America to feminism. His passion for feminism is matched by his love for his women. Hall's Elizabeth is a woman who's been educated as a lawyer by must endure sexual discrimination. She's tough but there's also pain in her performance. Heathcote's Olive has a lineage to feminism and liberal ideas. In real life, Olive Byrne was the niece of feminist Margaret Sanger. Bella Heathcote shows a devotion to those ideas. But more importantly, she exudes a telepathic performance. It may seem that Olive is the submissive of the three but she radiates a sexual aura which dominates Elizabeth and Marston.
Writer and director Angela Robinson has created a film that may accurately depict the three and if it doesn't I applaud the ideas of the movie. Granddaughter Christie Marston argues that Elizabeth and Olive were not in a sexual relationship but were more like sisters. (Hollywood Reporter) The relationship of the three was certainly radical for the time and it would be frowned upon now. But this unconventional family is actually conventional in its goals. If Wonder Woman was going to defeat evil by love (Boston University article) then why can't love exist in a family of two women, a man and children? Why can't that love defeat fear and bigotry? Robinson's scenes of the Marston family with evening dinners and playing with children are loving, happy and beautiful. You root for this family.
As for the sex between the three, Robinson projects some of her ideas. First, she physically depicts the lovemaking with hand-held camera shots. There's a slight shake to the picture. This depicts the emotional, nervous and sexual energy between the three. But what about the bondage? Isn't it the objectification of women that radical feminists decry about? No. It's consensual. Robinson seems to show that it is the women who are in charge here. It's a sexual power that motivates men and women.
Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is a warm, loving and yes, family movie that just happens to have a polymorphous relationship with some bondage thrown in. Radical feminists, feminists, comic book fans and movie lovers should see this film. The grade is A.
Tuesday, October 24, 2017
Columbus review
Columbus, Indiana is a small town that is the birthplace of Vice President Mike Pence. And I'm guessing that most Americans didn't know this. It is also a place where the late J. Irwin Miller of the Cummins Company led a private-public effort to construct buildings of modern architecture and art. The film Columbus uses this fascinating city as a backdrop.
Jin (Star Trek's John Cho) is a Korean-American who must stop in Columbus, Indiana after his professor father becomes ill and falls into a coma. Cho's performance has empathy and sadness as he is confronting the mortality of his father. Casey (Haley Lu Richardson) is a young woman who is taking care of her addict-mother, Maria played by Michelle Forbes. (Star Trek: The Next Generation) She gives an honest performance as a working class single mother. Unfortunately, Casey is putting her dreams of going to Yale in order to stay with her. Richardson turns in a realistic performance of a woman who is dedicated to her sacrifice but also has a yearning for something more. The two meet and develop a friendship among the art and architecture.
Writer and director Kogonada obviously has a love for this city of art. He uses it as a plot device while also getting Casey to talk about all the buildings and sculptures. It might be contrived except that Kogonada weaves his characters with the art, which obviously includes the architecture. They interact with it.
The look of this film is itself a work of art. Kogonada carefully frames each shot the way Kurosawa did with his movies. It's twenty first century Hopper. Hallways, buildings, furniture, rooms, sculptures even a chain link fence are shot in creative ways. He uses shadow to cover some characters. There are scenes shot with natural light. A mirror is used to reflect an intimate conversation. And in these photographic paintings are moving characters, people.
But among all of this art, this need for perfection are the imperfect lives of people. Jin is also estranged from his father. His dilemma is how long does he stay with him. Casey's dreams may disappear. These are two lonely people with paths that intersect like a work of modern architecture. My only problem with this film is that Kogonada could have used some subtle music as background for the conversations between Jin and Casey. It was a little too quiet.
Columbus is a film that conveys many things. Loneliness. Sadness. Warmth. Love. Beauty. It deserves multiple viewings. The grade is A Minus.
Jin (Star Trek's John Cho) is a Korean-American who must stop in Columbus, Indiana after his professor father becomes ill and falls into a coma. Cho's performance has empathy and sadness as he is confronting the mortality of his father. Casey (Haley Lu Richardson) is a young woman who is taking care of her addict-mother, Maria played by Michelle Forbes. (Star Trek: The Next Generation) She gives an honest performance as a working class single mother. Unfortunately, Casey is putting her dreams of going to Yale in order to stay with her. Richardson turns in a realistic performance of a woman who is dedicated to her sacrifice but also has a yearning for something more. The two meet and develop a friendship among the art and architecture.
Writer and director Kogonada obviously has a love for this city of art. He uses it as a plot device while also getting Casey to talk about all the buildings and sculptures. It might be contrived except that Kogonada weaves his characters with the art, which obviously includes the architecture. They interact with it.
The look of this film is itself a work of art. Kogonada carefully frames each shot the way Kurosawa did with his movies. It's twenty first century Hopper. Hallways, buildings, furniture, rooms, sculptures even a chain link fence are shot in creative ways. He uses shadow to cover some characters. There are scenes shot with natural light. A mirror is used to reflect an intimate conversation. And in these photographic paintings are moving characters, people.
But among all of this art, this need for perfection are the imperfect lives of people. Jin is also estranged from his father. His dilemma is how long does he stay with him. Casey's dreams may disappear. These are two lonely people with paths that intersect like a work of modern architecture. My only problem with this film is that Kogonada could have used some subtle music as background for the conversations between Jin and Casey. It was a little too quiet.
Columbus is a film that conveys many things. Loneliness. Sadness. Warmth. Love. Beauty. It deserves multiple viewings. The grade is A Minus.
Geostorm review
The film, Geostorm, wants you to know that the international space station has a self-destruct system. Okay, I know that this movie is supposed to take place in the future. But "Why?" The movie says it's to stop the station from crashing into the earth. But seriously, we know when things in orbit enter the atmosphere, they break up anyway and are burned up. And by the way, the self-destruct system can't be turned off once it's been turned on. What? I say again, "WHAT?!" It does make sense if you're trying to make a contrived, suspenseful plot point. But even then, it's got to make sense. This is one of the problems of Geostorm, the lack of logic.
The movie takes place in the near future. It's a time when the world is working together to control climate change. And in this day of Trump, it's a fantasy. The world has used technology to control the extreme weather through satellites and they are controlled by the International Climate Space Station. The creator of the life saving system, Jake Lawson (Gerard Butler) is testifying to Congress about turning over control from America to the world when he yells, "This is Sparta!" Okay, that's from 300. He shows disrespect which angers his brother, Max (Jim Sturges) who's some type of government official.
One of the satellites malfunctions and flash freezes some poor villagers in Afghanistan. President Palma (Andy Garcia) sends Jake to the space station to fix it before more people are turned into popsicles. But he finds out that somebody is sabotaging the system. Hold on. Maybe this is not a fantasy in this day of Trump sabotaging Obamacare. Anyway, Jake's got to stop anymore malfunctioning satellites or else there's going to be something called a "geostorm" which is a cool sounding term for worldwide storms that will destroy life on the planet.
I usually comment on performances but what's the point? The characters are given ridiculous things to say and do. Abbie Cornish plays Secret Service agent Sarah Wilson. She's dating Max though the script says that's illegal. Huh? Really? I laughed when she pulls out her gun and did some other action things because it was so over the top. Ed Harris is Secretary of State Dekkom. He probably wishes he was back in Westworld. Richard Sheehan is Taylor, a British crew member of the space station. He's cocky, annoying and basically a jerk. You just wish somebody would flush him out of an airlock or kick him down a well. Calling Gerard Butler. Speaking of Butler, he's okay but it's the writing and the direction that hurts this film.
Writer and director Dean Devlin (Independence Day) is competent as a director. Action scenes and special effects all work. But it's the writing. Characters spit out exposition unnaturally. Jake's daughter literally tells Max that he's not been in her life instead of subtly implying it. That's telling not showing. Bad guys are shot with menacing closing shots. I get it. He's a bad guy. The film wants to be some type of political thriller. But there's not enough of this plot thread. It spends too much time on the personal lives of the main characters. I don't care about Jake's daughter. Okay? Then there's the lack of logic and silliness. Jake goes on a space walk to retrieve a panel. Something goes wrong and he's hurtling through space and literally bouncing off the space station. And get this? He suffers no breach in his space suit. Really? And I forgot this hilarious scene. A gigantic tidal wave hits the beaches of Brazil. A bikini clad woman runs from the wave. As she is running down the street, a jet plane crashes and is about to crush her. Yet, she is able to outrun it and survive. Yeah, it's a little overkill.
Geostorm is not bad enough to laugh at. At best, it's not boring. It's just a big budget SyFy television movie without flying sharks. The grade is C Plus.
The movie takes place in the near future. It's a time when the world is working together to control climate change. And in this day of Trump, it's a fantasy. The world has used technology to control the extreme weather through satellites and they are controlled by the International Climate Space Station. The creator of the life saving system, Jake Lawson (Gerard Butler) is testifying to Congress about turning over control from America to the world when he yells, "This is Sparta!" Okay, that's from 300. He shows disrespect which angers his brother, Max (Jim Sturges) who's some type of government official.
One of the satellites malfunctions and flash freezes some poor villagers in Afghanistan. President Palma (Andy Garcia) sends Jake to the space station to fix it before more people are turned into popsicles. But he finds out that somebody is sabotaging the system. Hold on. Maybe this is not a fantasy in this day of Trump sabotaging Obamacare. Anyway, Jake's got to stop anymore malfunctioning satellites or else there's going to be something called a "geostorm" which is a cool sounding term for worldwide storms that will destroy life on the planet.
I usually comment on performances but what's the point? The characters are given ridiculous things to say and do. Abbie Cornish plays Secret Service agent Sarah Wilson. She's dating Max though the script says that's illegal. Huh? Really? I laughed when she pulls out her gun and did some other action things because it was so over the top. Ed Harris is Secretary of State Dekkom. He probably wishes he was back in Westworld. Richard Sheehan is Taylor, a British crew member of the space station. He's cocky, annoying and basically a jerk. You just wish somebody would flush him out of an airlock or kick him down a well. Calling Gerard Butler. Speaking of Butler, he's okay but it's the writing and the direction that hurts this film.
Writer and director Dean Devlin (Independence Day) is competent as a director. Action scenes and special effects all work. But it's the writing. Characters spit out exposition unnaturally. Jake's daughter literally tells Max that he's not been in her life instead of subtly implying it. That's telling not showing. Bad guys are shot with menacing closing shots. I get it. He's a bad guy. The film wants to be some type of political thriller. But there's not enough of this plot thread. It spends too much time on the personal lives of the main characters. I don't care about Jake's daughter. Okay? Then there's the lack of logic and silliness. Jake goes on a space walk to retrieve a panel. Something goes wrong and he's hurtling through space and literally bouncing off the space station. And get this? He suffers no breach in his space suit. Really? And I forgot this hilarious scene. A gigantic tidal wave hits the beaches of Brazil. A bikini clad woman runs from the wave. As she is running down the street, a jet plane crashes and is about to crush her. Yet, she is able to outrun it and survive. Yeah, it's a little overkill.
Geostorm is not bad enough to laugh at. At best, it's not boring. It's just a big budget SyFy television movie without flying sharks. The grade is C Plus.
Monday, October 23, 2017
General Kelly has become a four star idiot
Lost in the President Trump-Rep. Frederica Wilson controversy is the fact that Chief of Staff, General Kelly has made idiotic statements in the past in the defense of conservative Republican Trump. Last May, he defended trump's son-in-law for trying to establish a back channel through the Russian embassy that would defeat the CIA and FBI.
“I don’t see a big deal. I think any channel of communication, back or otherwise, with a country like Russia is a good thing.” DHS Secretary John Kelly From Fox News Sunday; Politico.
Yep. That was a four star general defending son-in-law, Jared Kushner, for attempting to set up a secret back channel that would run out of the Russian embassy to defeat the FBI and the CIA. An idiot would not wonder "Why do this?" A smart person would be suspicious because there's one major reason you would do this. To do something illegal with the Russians. You see this is not something to keep out of the press. The press don't have the ability to surveil the Russians that the FBI does. And if you're doing something legal, the FBI wouldn't do anything.
So, again General Kelly made an idiot of himself. When conservative President Trump made a "condolence" call to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson and said Sgt. Johnson "knew what he was getting himself into" or "knew what he signed up for", Kelly defended him. (Video below) The phrase "he knew what he was getting himself into" is not a statement of empathy or respect. It means that a person is at fault for his situation. For example, if you go to a baseball game and get hit with a foul ball, you knew what you were getting into. It's similar to the legal defense, assumption of the risk. It is not a phrase of empathy or nobility.
And by the way, General Kelly. Rep. Wilson did not eavesdrop on Trump's "condolence" call. The widow, Myeshia Johnson put it on speakerphone. She was a close friend of the Johnson family. (Huffington Post with ABC video.)
Lawrence O' Donnell's excellent video essay on why General Kelly made racist comments by referring Rep. Wilson as an "empty barrel."
“I don’t see a big deal. I think any channel of communication, back or otherwise, with a country like Russia is a good thing.” DHS Secretary John Kelly From Fox News Sunday; Politico.
Yep. That was a four star general defending son-in-law, Jared Kushner, for attempting to set up a secret back channel that would run out of the Russian embassy to defeat the FBI and the CIA. An idiot would not wonder "Why do this?" A smart person would be suspicious because there's one major reason you would do this. To do something illegal with the Russians. You see this is not something to keep out of the press. The press don't have the ability to surveil the Russians that the FBI does. And if you're doing something legal, the FBI wouldn't do anything.
So, again General Kelly made an idiot of himself. When conservative President Trump made a "condolence" call to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson and said Sgt. Johnson "knew what he was getting himself into" or "knew what he signed up for", Kelly defended him. (Video below) The phrase "he knew what he was getting himself into" is not a statement of empathy or respect. It means that a person is at fault for his situation. For example, if you go to a baseball game and get hit with a foul ball, you knew what you were getting into. It's similar to the legal defense, assumption of the risk. It is not a phrase of empathy or nobility.
And by the way, General Kelly. Rep. Wilson did not eavesdrop on Trump's "condolence" call. The widow, Myeshia Johnson put it on speakerphone. She was a close friend of the Johnson family. (Huffington Post with ABC video.)
Lawrence O' Donnell's excellent video essay on why General Kelly made racist comments by referring Rep. Wilson as an "empty barrel."
Friday, October 13, 2017
Stephen Colbert on the unraveling Donald Trump
Well, President Donald Trump is unraveling according to Vanity Fair. . And just remember he has the nuclear codes. Sigh. We need a laugh before we all die. Here's Stephen Colbert. Enjoy.
Hey, Bubba. Trump looks to hurt you and millions of Americans
Yo, Bubba. Yes , you the white working class male that voted for Trump because he would make America great again. Trump really hates you because he's going to make your health insurance go up. By now you should know he lies a lot and so when his administration says they're going to get you great health care. Don't believe it. Time for a little ole education Bubba. Let's look at yesterday's two mean actions he took yesterday to kill Obamacare or The Affordable Care Act. Source: Huffington Post
1. Allow Insurers to sell product-without pre-existing coverage and bare bone insurance plans.
Okay, Bubba. I know this sounds good. But it ain't. Here's how insurance works. Private insurance companies make money off your premiums and not paying claims. I repeat they profit by not paying claims. So the more customers they have, the more premiums they get. Now they're going to have to pay for Aunt Billie Jo's operation but if they get enough premiums, they can keep the costs to you and your Aunt down. Remember all those premium s per month where they don't pay a claim. Now if you offer something to healthy people that is cheaper and not as good, some people are going to go there. BUT AUNT BILLIE JO'S PREMIUMS'S GO UP BECAUSE THE INSURANCE COMPANY WILL HAVE LESS IN PREMIUMS. THE INSURANCE COMPANY WILL MAKE IT UP BY CHARGING AUNT BILLIE JO MORE. And if she can't pay? No healthcare. She could die. You don't want that.
2. Trump is going to refuse to pay cost sharing reduction payments. These subsidies are payed to insurance companies to lower your cost in deductibles, and co-payments. And if you're sayin' "How's that going to help me?" It doesn't. That rich, blonde haired, orange skinned president ain't on your side.
Now where is all dat money they are going save in Trump's refusal to pay those subsidies. Tax cuts for the rich. So, what to do? Contact your congressman and senator. Tell them to save Obamacare. VOTE LIBERAL DEMOCRAT IF YOU WANT TO LIVE.
1. Allow Insurers to sell product-without pre-existing coverage and bare bone insurance plans.
Okay, Bubba. I know this sounds good. But it ain't. Here's how insurance works. Private insurance companies make money off your premiums and not paying claims. I repeat they profit by not paying claims. So the more customers they have, the more premiums they get. Now they're going to have to pay for Aunt Billie Jo's operation but if they get enough premiums, they can keep the costs to you and your Aunt down. Remember all those premium s per month where they don't pay a claim. Now if you offer something to healthy people that is cheaper and not as good, some people are going to go there. BUT AUNT BILLIE JO'S PREMIUMS'S GO UP BECAUSE THE INSURANCE COMPANY WILL HAVE LESS IN PREMIUMS. THE INSURANCE COMPANY WILL MAKE IT UP BY CHARGING AUNT BILLIE JO MORE. And if she can't pay? No healthcare. She could die. You don't want that.
2. Trump is going to refuse to pay cost sharing reduction payments. These subsidies are payed to insurance companies to lower your cost in deductibles, and co-payments. And if you're sayin' "How's that going to help me?" It doesn't. That rich, blonde haired, orange skinned president ain't on your side.
Now where is all dat money they are going save in Trump's refusal to pay those subsidies. Tax cuts for the rich. So, what to do? Contact your congressman and senator. Tell them to save Obamacare. VOTE LIBERAL DEMOCRAT IF YOU WANT TO LIVE.
Wednesday, October 11, 2017
Colbert and Stewart give Trump equal time
The moron aka President Donald Trump (conservative Republican) has demanded equal time because he's getting hammered by late night comics. Well, Donald you are an easy target because the Secretary of State says you are a "moron." Well last night, Stephen Colbert with the help of Jon Stewart have given you equal time. Enjoy this hilarious bit. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Trump attacks the First Amendment
Conservative Republican President Donald Trump has declared war on the First Amendment. Angered by the NBC news story that this moronic president wanted a tenfold increase in nuclear arms, Trump has threatened to have NBC's broadcast license revoked. He can't get the FCC to do that to the network but he can go after NBC local stations. (New York Times) This is an attack on free speech and a free press as guaranteed by the First Amendment. At the very least, it's what we call a chilling effect on the exercise of the free speech. IMPEACH TRUMP NOW. VOTE LIBERAL DEMOCRAT IF YOU WANT TO LIVE.
The latest threat from Trump...
The latest threat from Trump...
Network news has become so partisan, distorted and fake that licenses must be challenged and, if appropriate, revoked. Not fair to public!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 12, 2017
Blade Runner 2049 review
Do Androids Make Good Movies? Well after last year's HBO mini-series Westworld and the recent release of the film Blade Runner 2049, I would say yes. Okay, androids didn't make these productions, at least I don't think so. But the use of androids as characters in drama has done some important things. It has allowed science fiction to explore what it means to be human.
Based on Philip K. Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Blade Runner 2049 is the sequel to the 1982 film Blade Runner. It takes place about 28 years later. Rogue replicants which are sythetic humans or androids are hunted down.. That doesn't mean there aren't replicants. It's just that the new versions are obedient to humans and don't cause trouble. In fact, some replicants are sued to terminate the rogue replicants. They are called blade runners. K (Ryan Gosling) is one of them. He's also a replicant. When K terminates a replicant posing as a farmer, he finds a trunk of bones which has an extraordinary secret that could lead to war between replicants and humans. Oh I forgot, Deckard (Harrison Ford) from the first movie shows up in the last third of they movie. Hey, no spoiler, it's in the trailer.
Also, I didn't spoil the movie by telling you that K is a replicant. It's in the first few minutes of the film. Yeah, unlike Producer Ridley Scott who made the first one and has been running around saying that Deckard (Harrison Ford) was a replicant. That's not clear in the first movie and I'm pretty sure Deckard in the novel is human. (ComicBook.com) But I digress. Ryan Gosling again demonstrates he's a fine actor. Here, he's a replicant but he's one that borders on having human empathy. He has virtual girlfriend, Joi (Ana De Armas) whom he dotes on. that begs the question, "Can androids love?" Harrison Ford turns in an atypical Ford performance. He's not a rogue, or particularly macho. His Deckard actually has warmth. Jared Leto should be happy that he got the part as the blind Wallace, the morally challenged industrialist who is now producing replicants for a slave force. It makes up for that frightening Joker in Suicide Squad. Sylvia Hoeks is Wallace's replicant henchman or should I say henchwoman. She is strikingly similar to Rachel from the first movie and the novel. She's a terminator without empathy.
Blade Runner's writer Hampton Fancher returns to write the sequel's screenplay along with Michael Green. (Logan). These two are experienced at marrying film noir with science fiction. And like the first film, this is a film noir. And like that genre, this movie is more than action picture or science fiction opera, it's an essay on the human condition. Themes on human existence are present. What effect are human memories, a theme in some of Dick's novels.
Director Dennis Villeneuve (Arrival) picks up Ridley Scott's mantle and produces a magnificent looking film. As much as I wanted more city landscapes, one must remember that this is earth after a great war. That's why there is so many dusty scenes. Perhaps, that is a weakness, the lack of exposition and why in the first movie there was a first person voice over. Blade Runner 2049 requires you to pay attention. There's a scene where K interviews an expert in memory construction for replicants. I wanted to criticize it for tts length. But in the scope of the entire film, I now realize how important it was.
Another theme in both the novel and these two movies is the definition of life. Do humans have souls? Is that why there are scenes of eyes.? Are they windows to souls? In Blade Runner 2049, there are scenes of female nudity. It's sexual. But it's relative to the human condition. The act of sex is what creates humans. Women are the sex of the species that brings life into the world. And what about androids? If they become sentient, do androids reproduce? Or is that the human condition?
Traditional film noir mysteries don't give any solutions to the mysteries until the third act. You'll be able to deduct fifty percent of the mystery in this movie after the announcement of the first plot point, i.e. the bones in the trunk. But that's not the point of this movie. Blade Runner 2049 shows the world with light and shadow. It's not clear as to who is right and who is wrong. This film is literate, intelligent and thought provoking. It will stand along its predecessor and like it, get better as time goes by. The grade is A.
Based on Philip K. Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Blade Runner 2049 is the sequel to the 1982 film Blade Runner. It takes place about 28 years later. Rogue replicants which are sythetic humans or androids are hunted down.. That doesn't mean there aren't replicants. It's just that the new versions are obedient to humans and don't cause trouble. In fact, some replicants are sued to terminate the rogue replicants. They are called blade runners. K (Ryan Gosling) is one of them. He's also a replicant. When K terminates a replicant posing as a farmer, he finds a trunk of bones which has an extraordinary secret that could lead to war between replicants and humans. Oh I forgot, Deckard (Harrison Ford) from the first movie shows up in the last third of they movie. Hey, no spoiler, it's in the trailer.
Also, I didn't spoil the movie by telling you that K is a replicant. It's in the first few minutes of the film. Yeah, unlike Producer Ridley Scott who made the first one and has been running around saying that Deckard (Harrison Ford) was a replicant. That's not clear in the first movie and I'm pretty sure Deckard in the novel is human. (ComicBook.com) But I digress. Ryan Gosling again demonstrates he's a fine actor. Here, he's a replicant but he's one that borders on having human empathy. He has virtual girlfriend, Joi (Ana De Armas) whom he dotes on. that begs the question, "Can androids love?" Harrison Ford turns in an atypical Ford performance. He's not a rogue, or particularly macho. His Deckard actually has warmth. Jared Leto should be happy that he got the part as the blind Wallace, the morally challenged industrialist who is now producing replicants for a slave force. It makes up for that frightening Joker in Suicide Squad. Sylvia Hoeks is Wallace's replicant henchman or should I say henchwoman. She is strikingly similar to Rachel from the first movie and the novel. She's a terminator without empathy.
Blade Runner's writer Hampton Fancher returns to write the sequel's screenplay along with Michael Green. (Logan). These two are experienced at marrying film noir with science fiction. And like the first film, this is a film noir. And like that genre, this movie is more than action picture or science fiction opera, it's an essay on the human condition. Themes on human existence are present. What effect are human memories, a theme in some of Dick's novels.
Director Dennis Villeneuve (Arrival) picks up Ridley Scott's mantle and produces a magnificent looking film. As much as I wanted more city landscapes, one must remember that this is earth after a great war. That's why there is so many dusty scenes. Perhaps, that is a weakness, the lack of exposition and why in the first movie there was a first person voice over. Blade Runner 2049 requires you to pay attention. There's a scene where K interviews an expert in memory construction for replicants. I wanted to criticize it for tts length. But in the scope of the entire film, I now realize how important it was.
Another theme in both the novel and these two movies is the definition of life. Do humans have souls? Is that why there are scenes of eyes.? Are they windows to souls? In Blade Runner 2049, there are scenes of female nudity. It's sexual. But it's relative to the human condition. The act of sex is what creates humans. Women are the sex of the species that brings life into the world. And what about androids? If they become sentient, do androids reproduce? Or is that the human condition?
Traditional film noir mysteries don't give any solutions to the mysteries until the third act. You'll be able to deduct fifty percent of the mystery in this movie after the announcement of the first plot point, i.e. the bones in the trunk. But that's not the point of this movie. Blade Runner 2049 shows the world with light and shadow. It's not clear as to who is right and who is wrong. This film is literate, intelligent and thought provoking. It will stand along its predecessor and like it, get better as time goes by. The grade is A.
Moron Trump wants tenfold more nukes
NBC News is reporting that conservative President Trump wanted a huge increase in nuclear weapons. By increase, he wanted a tenfold amount. Late, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called Trump a "moron." Check out the discussion by the Morning Joe crew below. Senator Bob Corker who is retiring is probably the only Republican sounding the alarm. And by the way he's the chair of the Foreign Relations Committee. We have a moron for a President who knows nothing of history. It was an arms race that led to World War I. VOTE LIBERAL DEMOCRAT IF YOU WANT TO LIVE.
Saturday, October 7, 2017
Battle of the Sexes review
I never took the 1973 "Battle of the Sexes" " tennis match between top woman's player, Billie Jean King and has- been Bobby Riggs seriously. First, it was between a 29 year old King and a 55 year old Riggs. I was surprised that Riggs didn't have a heart attack. Second, all of the publicity before the match indicated that Riggs was part Muhammed Ali, and part circus clown. He said he was putting the "show" in chauvinist. Then you had the silly pre-match ceremonies. King was brought in on a litter carried by hunky slave men. Riggs was escorted by scantily clad women. But looking back, it was a turning point for women's tennis and the women's movement. The match does make for a fascinating story that's depicted in the film Battle of the Sexes.
The film takes place in the early seventies and starts out with Billie Jean King (Emma Stone) being informed that the prize money for the woman in an upcoming tournament would be one twelfth that of what the men's winner would get. Infuriated, King and nine women tennis players with the help of Gladys Heldmen (Sarah Silverman) form The Women's Tennis Association. The goal would be to increase the payout to women players and get some equality for the woman athlete.
Meanwhile, over-the-hill tennis player Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell) is struggling with his gambling addiction and left to play on the senior circuit. The time period is also the dawn of the women's liberation movement. There were many men who felt threatened by women who wanted equality and were downright sexist when it came to women. Riggs seizes upon the moment and challenges King to a match. She initially declines and Riggs plays top player and homophobic tennis player Margaret Court. (Jessica McNamee) He defeats her and King finally accepts the challenge for the big match.
Emma Stone turns in an excellent performance as the conflicted King. She's fighting three battles. One is to lead women's tennis to equality. Then there is the match with Riggs. The other is her burgeoning lesbianism leading to an affair with her hairdresser. She suffers a guilt knowing that she could hurt her husband. It's also ironic that Court is portrayed in the film as the two in real life have had recent run-ins over homosexuality. (Sydney Morning Herald)
The supporting actors also rise to Stone's performance. I've watched Sarah Silverman's work as a comedian for years from Star Trek: Voyager to her stand up. Here's she plays a tough feminist promoter for woman's tennis. Got to love the scene where Silverman's Gladys and King barge in on a men's club. Simply put, Steve Carell is perfectly cast. He captures Riggs tongue in cheek personality. His Riggs was not really a male chauvinist. That was Riggs in real life. I'm not saying he was a feminist but clearly he was playing the clown. He was teasing the public while using his shtick to get one more day under the sun. Carell knows this and uses his comedic skills for his portrayal.
Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire)'s screenplay does a good job at capturing the events surrounding the match which was called "The Battle of the Sexes." The slight problem here is that he has all these King plot threads. They're interesting but Riggs also has an interesting story too. I would have loved to see a little more of the clown. Still, the comedy works and the movie is touching. Also, kudos to directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine) for staging some excellent tennis shots.
The King-Riggs match was a big event. Fifty million people in the United States watched it on TV. Thirty thousand saw it at the Astrodome making it the largest audience to watch a tennis match live. (Wikiepedia) As I said, it was a turning point of women's tennis. It brought attention to the woman's game and propelled it to popularity. As for women, the idea of equality for women was now firmly placed in the public domain. And it was a legendary reality TV show demonstrating how a reality TV event or reality TV star like Trump could affect society. . Battle of the Sexes captures the moment beautifully. The grade is A minus.
The film takes place in the early seventies and starts out with Billie Jean King (Emma Stone) being informed that the prize money for the woman in an upcoming tournament would be one twelfth that of what the men's winner would get. Infuriated, King and nine women tennis players with the help of Gladys Heldmen (Sarah Silverman) form The Women's Tennis Association. The goal would be to increase the payout to women players and get some equality for the woman athlete.
Meanwhile, over-the-hill tennis player Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell) is struggling with his gambling addiction and left to play on the senior circuit. The time period is also the dawn of the women's liberation movement. There were many men who felt threatened by women who wanted equality and were downright sexist when it came to women. Riggs seizes upon the moment and challenges King to a match. She initially declines and Riggs plays top player and homophobic tennis player Margaret Court. (Jessica McNamee) He defeats her and King finally accepts the challenge for the big match.
Emma Stone turns in an excellent performance as the conflicted King. She's fighting three battles. One is to lead women's tennis to equality. Then there is the match with Riggs. The other is her burgeoning lesbianism leading to an affair with her hairdresser. She suffers a guilt knowing that she could hurt her husband. It's also ironic that Court is portrayed in the film as the two in real life have had recent run-ins over homosexuality. (Sydney Morning Herald)
The supporting actors also rise to Stone's performance. I've watched Sarah Silverman's work as a comedian for years from Star Trek: Voyager to her stand up. Here's she plays a tough feminist promoter for woman's tennis. Got to love the scene where Silverman's Gladys and King barge in on a men's club. Simply put, Steve Carell is perfectly cast. He captures Riggs tongue in cheek personality. His Riggs was not really a male chauvinist. That was Riggs in real life. I'm not saying he was a feminist but clearly he was playing the clown. He was teasing the public while using his shtick to get one more day under the sun. Carell knows this and uses his comedic skills for his portrayal.
Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire)'s screenplay does a good job at capturing the events surrounding the match which was called "The Battle of the Sexes." The slight problem here is that he has all these King plot threads. They're interesting but Riggs also has an interesting story too. I would have loved to see a little more of the clown. Still, the comedy works and the movie is touching. Also, kudos to directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine) for staging some excellent tennis shots.
The King-Riggs match was a big event. Fifty million people in the United States watched it on TV. Thirty thousand saw it at the Astrodome making it the largest audience to watch a tennis match live. (Wikiepedia) As I said, it was a turning point of women's tennis. It brought attention to the woman's game and propelled it to popularity. As for women, the idea of equality for women was now firmly placed in the public domain. And it was a legendary reality TV show demonstrating how a reality TV event or reality TV star like Trump could affect society. . Battle of the Sexes captures the moment beautifully. The grade is A minus.
Thursday, October 5, 2017
Stephen Colbert on the Secretary of State calling Trump a "moron."
You knew when Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called President Trump a "moron" that satirist Stephen Colbert would have fun with it. Well, he did. Enjoy his monologue from The Late Show.
American Made review
I'm guessing that the late Barry Seal would love American Made, a film based on his exploits as a pilot for the CIA. First, who wouldn't like being portrayed by the handsome Tom Cruise. Second, it's a fine movie that may not be historically accurate but is both complicated and fun. Oh yeah, Seal may have flaws but doesn't come off that bad. Seal was a real person whose personality could not be described as black and white.
American Made starts out by showing TWA pilot Barry Seal (Tom Cruise) bored of flying people around the country and smuggling Cuban cigars. The smuggling bit catches the attention of CIA agent Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson) who recruits Seal to fly for the agency. The adventure appeals to Seal who initially flies sorties through Latin American countries taking pictures of communist insurgents. Later missions would include delivering money to Panamanian dictator Manual Noriega for intelligence. Seal's skills catches the attention of drug dealer Pablo Escobar. (Mauicio Mejia) With a need to feed his wife and children, Seal agrees to run drugs to America for money. And I mean it was a boat load of money.
Tom Cruise as Barry Seal turns in one of his better performances of his career. This should make up for The Mummy. Cruise is able to turn his good looks and charm into an individual that believes he can escape the DEA, FBI and enjoy the fruits of his criminal acts without feelings of guilt. Seal's greed blinds him to the illegality of his actions. Sarah Wright as Lucy, Seal's wife. is a sexy country goddess. She may not like the drug smuggling but she enjoys the benefits. Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson does an excellent American accent. You would never have known he was a Weasley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I. His CIA agent Schafer is just as greedy as Seal. Only it's a greed that needs success for the mission, no matter how dubious.
Director Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow) and screenplay writer Gary Spinelli have made a period piece that mixes eighties' greed, conservatism, the war on drugs and the Cold War into forces of motivation. Yes, Nancy Reagan's "Just say no" to drugs looks naive. Thee was hubris in politics. Perhaps, it is the era's greed that overwhelms everything. Whether it's about money or politics, the desire to achieve these goals led people like Barry Seal, and Colonel Oliver North to ignore morality. The film also mixes funny satire, and sharp drama. It's a lively, entertaining concoction that is slightly let down by a lack of intensity in the third act. And let me say something about the Doug Liman's direction of the flying sequences. They're astounding. Planes are swooping down into the Columbian jungles. They're outlasting DEA jets. Exciting stuff. I hope as a tribute to the two pilots, Alan Purwin and Carlos Berl who were killed in making this film that Liman used some of their work regardless of the suits filed against the production companies. (Hollywood Reporter) It would be a nice memorial to their work in creating some gorgeous flying sequences.
American Made is a funny and smart film. The grade is A.
American Made starts out by showing TWA pilot Barry Seal (Tom Cruise) bored of flying people around the country and smuggling Cuban cigars. The smuggling bit catches the attention of CIA agent Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson) who recruits Seal to fly for the agency. The adventure appeals to Seal who initially flies sorties through Latin American countries taking pictures of communist insurgents. Later missions would include delivering money to Panamanian dictator Manual Noriega for intelligence. Seal's skills catches the attention of drug dealer Pablo Escobar. (Mauicio Mejia) With a need to feed his wife and children, Seal agrees to run drugs to America for money. And I mean it was a boat load of money.
Tom Cruise as Barry Seal turns in one of his better performances of his career. This should make up for The Mummy. Cruise is able to turn his good looks and charm into an individual that believes he can escape the DEA, FBI and enjoy the fruits of his criminal acts without feelings of guilt. Seal's greed blinds him to the illegality of his actions. Sarah Wright as Lucy, Seal's wife. is a sexy country goddess. She may not like the drug smuggling but she enjoys the benefits. Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson does an excellent American accent. You would never have known he was a Weasley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I. His CIA agent Schafer is just as greedy as Seal. Only it's a greed that needs success for the mission, no matter how dubious.
Director Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow) and screenplay writer Gary Spinelli have made a period piece that mixes eighties' greed, conservatism, the war on drugs and the Cold War into forces of motivation. Yes, Nancy Reagan's "Just say no" to drugs looks naive. Thee was hubris in politics. Perhaps, it is the era's greed that overwhelms everything. Whether it's about money or politics, the desire to achieve these goals led people like Barry Seal, and Colonel Oliver North to ignore morality. The film also mixes funny satire, and sharp drama. It's a lively, entertaining concoction that is slightly let down by a lack of intensity in the third act. And let me say something about the Doug Liman's direction of the flying sequences. They're astounding. Planes are swooping down into the Columbian jungles. They're outlasting DEA jets. Exciting stuff. I hope as a tribute to the two pilots, Alan Purwin and Carlos Berl who were killed in making this film that Liman used some of their work regardless of the suits filed against the production companies. (Hollywood Reporter) It would be a nice memorial to their work in creating some gorgeous flying sequences.
American Made is a funny and smart film. The grade is A.
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Kingsman: The Golden Circle review and the rules for action sequels.
Following the success of the spy movie Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014) is the sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle. And like any action sequel there are rules, at least for big budget sequels. Yeah, this is inspired by the rules from Scream 2. (1997)
Rule 1. Bigger action set pieces. Come on you got more money because of the first one. It's a franchise. Rule 2. More carnage. That means more dead bodies. Rule 3. Bigger explosions. See Rule 1. Rule 4. Big dramatic plot surprises. Yeah, everybody wants to make The Empire Strikes Back. Rule 5. Give the audience more of what they saw in the first one. But what about creativity? You want art, go to The Louvre. We're trying to make a boatload of money from our franchise.
In The Kingsman; The Golden Circle, super drug dealer Poppy (Julianne Moore) destroys The Kingsman headquarters. She's this crazy nostalgia freak for the fifties, and the sixties. And her Cambodian jungle headquarters shows it. There's an old fashioned bowling alley, and yes it could be a nod to The Big Lebowski. After all Jeff Bridges is in this movie. At the center is Poppy's headquarters which is fifties hamburger diner complete with robot dogs and a gigantic meat grinder for turning your human enemies into meat patties. She's also captured Elton John who has some very funny moments. Anyway, she's got a plan. Since she supplies most of the world's drugs, she's decided to spike the supply with a poison and blackmail the world since she has the antidote.
Kingsman Eggsy aka Galahad (Taron Egerton) and Merlin (Mark Strong) must seek out help. They are directed to Kentucky where the Statesman are headquartered. The Statesman are American version of the Kingsman. They're led by Champagne aka Champ aka as The Dude. (Jeff Bridges) Um... okay, he's not known as The Dude. But come on, there's Julianne Moore here and bowling. They find Harry Hart still alive. (Colin Firth). Hart was shot in the head by Samuel L. Jackson in the last film. Halle Berry is here as the American version of Merlin or Q. But she's given very little to do. Hold on. Berry, Bridges, Moore and Firth. A law firm? No. But these four actors have Oscars. Whoa. Bet you a dollar, nobody is going to get an Oscar for this movie.
Director Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman have made a screenplay that follows the rules of action sequels. It's got bigger action, there's more carnage, bigger explosions, big dramatic plot surprises, and it gives the audience the same stuff from the last movie. Action and comedy. So what's not to like? Well, too much of a good thing may not be a good thing. The movie is bloated. For example, Poppy grinds a henchman into ground... well, ground henchmen and then cooks the um... said beef and makes a burger out of it. She then feeds it to another henchmen. You guys are trying to turn us into vegetarians. And then the way they bring back Harry is kind of ridiculous. The Statesmen have nano technology to repair head shots. Really? How about just having him shot as glancing flesh wound? And if you thought the first one was campy, this one seems to get its inspiration from the sixties Batman TV show. There was also no need for the demise of some of the characters. Guys, you're not making The Godfather II here.
Director Vaughn certainly knows how to frame and set up the action set pieces. He relies less on editing and more on slow motion tracking shots. It makes sense and there is less confusion. There's some good comedy here and some cringe worthy comic material. The later stages of the poison causes people to dance. As Steve Martin would say, "Comedy is not pretty." I will say this. Elton John's last sentence is one of the funniest lines in cinema this year.
Kinsman: The Golden Circle is fun. But it's like eating ice cream too fast. You'll get a headache. The grade is B.
Rule 1. Bigger action set pieces. Come on you got more money because of the first one. It's a franchise. Rule 2. More carnage. That means more dead bodies. Rule 3. Bigger explosions. See Rule 1. Rule 4. Big dramatic plot surprises. Yeah, everybody wants to make The Empire Strikes Back. Rule 5. Give the audience more of what they saw in the first one. But what about creativity? You want art, go to The Louvre. We're trying to make a boatload of money from our franchise.
In The Kingsman; The Golden Circle, super drug dealer Poppy (Julianne Moore) destroys The Kingsman headquarters. She's this crazy nostalgia freak for the fifties, and the sixties. And her Cambodian jungle headquarters shows it. There's an old fashioned bowling alley, and yes it could be a nod to The Big Lebowski. After all Jeff Bridges is in this movie. At the center is Poppy's headquarters which is fifties hamburger diner complete with robot dogs and a gigantic meat grinder for turning your human enemies into meat patties. She's also captured Elton John who has some very funny moments. Anyway, she's got a plan. Since she supplies most of the world's drugs, she's decided to spike the supply with a poison and blackmail the world since she has the antidote.
Kingsman Eggsy aka Galahad (Taron Egerton) and Merlin (Mark Strong) must seek out help. They are directed to Kentucky where the Statesman are headquartered. The Statesman are American version of the Kingsman. They're led by Champagne aka Champ aka as The Dude. (Jeff Bridges) Um... okay, he's not known as The Dude. But come on, there's Julianne Moore here and bowling. They find Harry Hart still alive. (Colin Firth). Hart was shot in the head by Samuel L. Jackson in the last film. Halle Berry is here as the American version of Merlin or Q. But she's given very little to do. Hold on. Berry, Bridges, Moore and Firth. A law firm? No. But these four actors have Oscars. Whoa. Bet you a dollar, nobody is going to get an Oscar for this movie.
Director Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman have made a screenplay that follows the rules of action sequels. It's got bigger action, there's more carnage, bigger explosions, big dramatic plot surprises, and it gives the audience the same stuff from the last movie. Action and comedy. So what's not to like? Well, too much of a good thing may not be a good thing. The movie is bloated. For example, Poppy grinds a henchman into ground... well, ground henchmen and then cooks the um... said beef and makes a burger out of it. She then feeds it to another henchmen. You guys are trying to turn us into vegetarians. And then the way they bring back Harry is kind of ridiculous. The Statesmen have nano technology to repair head shots. Really? How about just having him shot as glancing flesh wound? And if you thought the first one was campy, this one seems to get its inspiration from the sixties Batman TV show. There was also no need for the demise of some of the characters. Guys, you're not making The Godfather II here.
Director Vaughn certainly knows how to frame and set up the action set pieces. He relies less on editing and more on slow motion tracking shots. It makes sense and there is less confusion. There's some good comedy here and some cringe worthy comic material. The later stages of the poison causes people to dance. As Steve Martin would say, "Comedy is not pretty." I will say this. Elton John's last sentence is one of the funniest lines in cinema this year.
Kinsman: The Golden Circle is fun. But it's like eating ice cream too fast. You'll get a headache. The grade is B.
Monday, September 25, 2017
Trump shows the world he's a racist and Colin Kaepernick's mother's response
On Friday, conservative Republican President Donald Trump showed the world he wants the angry bigoted white man vote and that he is a racist. You see he was in Alabama, the heart of the angry , racist white male nation. Remember what Bull Connor did to civil rights protesters in the sixties? Anyway, Trump in a political rally said this about NFL players kneeling in protest to racial injustice during the national anthem,
"Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, he's fired. He's fired!" CNN REPORT
Now let's not be suckers here. We know who he is referring to. It's African American quarterback Colin Kaepernick who kneeled in protest to the treatment of black people by the police. Trump said this in front of a white audience full of angry white males. He said it in Alabama, the heart of angry, white, racist male nation. Alabama has a history of opposing civil rights. It's a message of support for bigots. And before you say there was nothing about blacks in that statement please remember that Trump did not call Nazi protesters "sons of bitches." In fact, he said there were "fine people" in the Nazi ranks. (The Atlantic) Guess who are the bad guys according to conservative Trump? The African Americans. And what about free speech/ This is not just saying that the NFL can punish protests therefore not a government suppressing speech. Trump as President is the government. By urging the suppression of free speech, he's violating the guarantees of free speech under the First Amendment.
So, what did Colin Kaepernick's mother say about this? Here's her glorious tweet.
You go girl. Impeach Trump now. Vote liberal Democrat, if you want to live.
"Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, he's fired. He's fired!" CNN REPORT
Now let's not be suckers here. We know who he is referring to. It's African American quarterback Colin Kaepernick who kneeled in protest to the treatment of black people by the police. Trump said this in front of a white audience full of angry white males. He said it in Alabama, the heart of angry, white, racist male nation. Alabama has a history of opposing civil rights. It's a message of support for bigots. And before you say there was nothing about blacks in that statement please remember that Trump did not call Nazi protesters "sons of bitches." In fact, he said there were "fine people" in the Nazi ranks. (The Atlantic) Guess who are the bad guys according to conservative Trump? The African Americans. And what about free speech/ This is not just saying that the NFL can punish protests therefore not a government suppressing speech. Trump as President is the government. By urging the suppression of free speech, he's violating the guarantees of free speech under the First Amendment.
So, what did Colin Kaepernick's mother say about this? Here's her glorious tweet.
Guess that makes me a proud bitch!
— Teresa Kaepernick (@B4IleaveU) September 23, 2017
You go girl. Impeach Trump now. Vote liberal Democrat, if you want to live.
The Bengals' season is over
Is it too early to call the 2017 Cincinnati Bengals season over? After last week's game where the Bengals couldn't score a touchdown against the Houston Texans who had their two starting cornerbacks injured and now the Bengals drop a game to the Green Bay Packers after leading them 21-7, this long suffering Bengals fans has had it.
Yesterday's game against the Packers had all the hallmarks of your typical Bengals epic meltdown. After leading the Packers at halftime by 21-7, the Bengals scored just 3 points the remainder of the game. It's time to sit Bengals cornerback Adam "Packman" Jones down. His new nickname should be "Toast." Because he got toasted on a 72 yard pass play to set up the Packers winning field goal. Not only has he lost a step, he's an embarrassment off the field and do you all remember his meltdown against the Steelers in that 2016 Playoff game? His temper in that game caused a unsportsmanlike penalty which gave the Steelers a chip shot field goal. (Check out this News Record op-ed piece on Jones.)
Yesterday, the Bengals lost in the usual heartbreaking way. I've seen this movie before. Time to call the season. Not really interested in writing about the Bengals until they do something sustainable in a positive way. Time to think about the draft. Here's Lance McAlister's report.
Yesterday's game against the Packers had all the hallmarks of your typical Bengals epic meltdown. After leading the Packers at halftime by 21-7, the Bengals scored just 3 points the remainder of the game. It's time to sit Bengals cornerback Adam "Packman" Jones down. His new nickname should be "Toast." Because he got toasted on a 72 yard pass play to set up the Packers winning field goal. Not only has he lost a step, he's an embarrassment off the field and do you all remember his meltdown against the Steelers in that 2016 Playoff game? His temper in that game caused a unsportsmanlike penalty which gave the Steelers a chip shot field goal. (Check out this News Record op-ed piece on Jones.)
Yesterday, the Bengals lost in the usual heartbreaking way. I've seen this movie before. Time to call the season. Not really interested in writing about the Bengals until they do something sustainable in a positive way. Time to think about the draft. Here's Lance McAlister's report.
Thursday, September 21, 2017
Sen Bill Cassidy aka Doctor Death fails two oaths and Jimmy Kimmel torches conservatives
Conservative Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.) who is a doctor violated his primary medical oath which is to do no harm and then fail his own coined term "The Jimmy Kimmel Test." Cassidy after hearing Kimmel make a public plea to Congress to provide health care to everyone even those who could not afford medical care. Kimmel was grateful that he had health insurance to cover his infant son who had a congenital heart condition. Kimmel was urging Congress to either fix Obamacare or provide insurance to everyone even the poor. Cassidy told Kimmel on his show that any plan he would support would do so.
Kimmel unfortunately trusted a conservative Republican. You see they view government assisted healthcare as socialism That comes from their god, Ronald Reagan. (My post with Reagan's audio on the issue.) So now Cassidy has proposed a new healthcare plan. It would repeal Obamacare. And it would slowly kill Medicaid. Place caps on how much insurance would pay for one patient. And get this it would allow states to opt out of mandating insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions. Since his plan would cause millions to lose coverage and likely lead to deaths. So, let's call Cassidy, "Doctor Death."
Here's Jimmy Kimmel on the Cassidy 's "healthcare" plan.
Cassidy then said he didn't lie to Kimmel and then indicated that Kimmel didn't understand healthcare. Bad mistake. Kimmel torches him. Thank you Jimmy Kimmel for fighting for Americans' healthcare. Here's Kimmel's response. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
Kimmel unfortunately trusted a conservative Republican. You see they view government assisted healthcare as socialism That comes from their god, Ronald Reagan. (My post with Reagan's audio on the issue.) So now Cassidy has proposed a new healthcare plan. It would repeal Obamacare. And it would slowly kill Medicaid. Place caps on how much insurance would pay for one patient. And get this it would allow states to opt out of mandating insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions. Since his plan would cause millions to lose coverage and likely lead to deaths. So, let's call Cassidy, "Doctor Death."
Here's Jimmy Kimmel on the Cassidy 's "healthcare" plan.
Cassidy then said he didn't lie to Kimmel and then indicated that Kimmel didn't understand healthcare. Bad mistake. Kimmel torches him. Thank you Jimmy Kimmel for fighting for Americans' healthcare. Here's Kimmel's response. And vote liberal Democrat if you want to live.
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