Category: movies

November Miscellany

Politics, Race, Comics, Music, Sports, Weather – we do it all

U.S. Thanksgiving Day, we drove from Albany to Oneonta, and saw the temperature rise from 44 and fog to 52 to 68F in a little more than an hour. Then that afternoon, the temperature plummeted, where it’s been ever since.
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I received this question, as did a number of other bloggers: “I’d be interested in your reaction to this: An effort underway to remove Pelosi as Speaker, and make way for impeachment. Details. What flaws do you see with this plan; and is there a way to block this?”

As I’ve made abundantly clear, I favor the impeachment of Bush and Cheney. But the idea of impeaching Pelosi for her “high crimes and misdemeanors” of NOT impeaching them in order to impeaching them seems a bit surreal. Actually, it reminds me of a maneuver of my former church whereby the associate pastor was removed in order to make way for removing the senior pastor, except that it took 10 years to actually remove the senior pastor.

Regardless, the impeachment of Nancy Pelosi is highly unlikely to happen. And even if it did, impeachment of Bush/Cheney won’t happen. The Democrats are too risk averse. And oddly, from everything I’ve read, impeachment might very well STRENGTHEN the Democrats as it did in 1974, and as it did for the Republicans in 1868.
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The current TV Guide lists the current Presidential candidates’ favorite television programs. Will Fred Hembeck support Barack Obama, now that Obama’s come out in favor of SponngeBob Squarepants? And speaking of Fred, read Hembeck: Court Jester of Comics, an interview by Peter Sanderson in Publishers’ Weekly.
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A couple things I learned from ADD, one directly, one indirectly:
Tom Spurgeon’s Holiday Shopping Guide and
an interview with David Michaelis, biographer of Charles Schulz. Oh, and Gordon says nice things about the book about the creator of the Peanuts comic strip.
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I don’t really follow college football, and don’t like how the polls determine rankings; I’m more of an NFL fan. Still, I prefer the way cthe college game settles ties, with each team getting a chance or two (or three, in the case of Arkansas’ upset of LSU last week) to the randomness of the coin toss to determine who’ll get the ball first, and quite possibly, score and win.
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Cracked.com shows video clips of 8 of The 9 Most Racist Disney Characters:
#9. The Merchant from Aladdin
#8. Sebastian from The Little Mermaid
#7. The Crows from Dumbo
#6. King Louie from The Jungle Book
#5. The Siamese Twin Gang from Chip n’ Dale Rescue Rangers
#4. Sunflower the Centaur from Fantasia
#3. The Indians from Peter Pan
#2. Uncle Remus from Song of the South
#1. Thursday from Mickey Mouse and the Boy Thursday (Book)
The Little Mermaid clip surprised me, but I see its validity on the list.
Even though I feel uncomfortable with Song of the South – I do remember it in re-release c. 1960, I think, the movement to get Song of the South released on video doesn’t bother me. Not to say that I’ll buy it.
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Also from Cracked.com: Ridiculous Overseas Rip-Offs of American Films, including a hysterical “Thriller” from India, a cheesy “Star Wars” from Turkey, and this Beatles Indian riff featuring, of all people, Mark Cuban:

ROG

ROG

Oscar-Worthy Movies I Have Seen: 1937

I used to do this once a month, but haven’t since July; if I’m ever going to get to movies that came out after I was born, I’d better get to it.

Picture:
THE LIFE OF EMILE ZOLA, “The Awful Truth”, “Captains Courageous”, “Dead End”, “The Good Earth”, “In Old Chicago”, “Lost Horizon”, “One Hundred Men and a Girl”, “Stage Door”, “A Star is Born”
Actor:
SPENCER TRACY in “Captains Courageous”, Charles Boyer in “Conquest”, Fredric March in “A Star is Born”, Robert Montgomery in “Night Must Fall”, Paul Muni in “The Life of Emile Zola”
Actress:
LUISE RAINER in “The Good Earth”, Irene Dunne in “The Awful Truth”, Greta Garbo in “Camille”, Janet Gaynor in “A Star is Born”, Barbara Stanwyck in “Stella Dallas”
Supporting Actor:
JOSEPH SCHILDKRAUT in “The Life of Emile Zola”, Ralph Bellamy in “The Awful Truth”, Thomas Mitchell in “The Hurricane”, H. B. Warner in “Lost Horizon”, Roland Young in “Topper”
Supporting Actress:
ALICE BRADY in “In Old Chicago”, Andrea Leeds in “Stage Door”, Anne Shirley in “Stella Dallas”, Claire Trevor in “Dead End”, May Whitty in “Night Must Fall”
Director: LEO MCCAREY for “The Awful Truth”, William Dieterle for “The Life of Emile Zola”, Sidney Franklin for “The Good Earth”, Gregory La Cava for “Stage Door”, William Wellmann for “A Star is Born”

I’m sure I saw, on TV, Captains Courageous and The Good Earth and quite possible Emile Zola and Stella Dallas, but none of them since I used to watch movies on Saturday and Sunday afternoons as a kid, and none of them have stuck, except The Good Earth; I found the struggle to survive on the farm quite moving.
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100 Movies, 100 Quotes, 100 Numbers

ROG

ROG

Golden Compass QUESTIONS

I was having a conversation online with someone about an upcoming movie, suggesting a backlash against it. I’d just received this e-mail:

THE GOLDEN COMPASS, a new movie targeted at children, will be released December 7, 2007.
This movie is based on the first book of a trilogy by atheist Philip Pullman. In the final book a boy and girl kill God so they can do as they please. Pullman left little doubt about his intentions when he said in a 2003 interview that “My books are about
killing God.”
The movie is a watered down version of the first book and is designed to be very attractive in the hope unsuspecting parents will take their children to see the the movie and that the children will want the books for Christmas.
The movie has a well known cast, including Nicole Kidman, Kevin Bacon, and Sam Elliott. It will probably be advertised extensively, so it is crucial that we get the word out to warn parents to avoid this movie.
You can research this for yourself. Start with this article on Snopes.com, then go to Google.

This letter went on to distinguish it from the Harry Potter books, which were derscribed as having a Christian subtext(!).

I was vaguely familiar with the Golden Compass books, but haven’t read them, so I’m trying to find out:

1. Whether you think the books are anti-God/anti-religion, and if so, how did that affect your enjoyment of the books?

2. Do you plan to see the film? Does a potential boycott make you want to see the movie more or less? Given the limited number of films I see these days, I wasn’t planning to see it at all – it’s just not my kind of flick – yet a boycott somehow makes it somehow more intriguing.

ROG

ROG

Uncool QUESTION


I was reading Steve Gerber’s blog when he noted that singer Robert Goulet has the same disease that he does, only more severe. A couple letter-writers debated Bob’s coolness; Steve stayed out of the fray. For the record, I’ve long stopped worrying about what’s cool.

A couple bloggers I know faced ridicule by admitting publicly that they liked the movie Jersey Girl; I’ll withhold their names to protect the guilty. I never saw it, so I really can’t say if it’s as awful as some people think.

I am aware, however, of what others think are uncool. So, my question: what songs, movies, TV shows, books, whatever, do you think others think are uncool, but you like them anyway? No movie or book come to mind, but I do have a vague recollection of actually liking My Mother, The Car. (I was young.)

Music, on the other hand, I have some strong candidates. And they’re not songs; they’re bits of songs:
The piano intro of Could It Be Magic by Barry Manilow. Hey, he copped it from Chopin.
The strings at the end of I Haven’t Got Time For The Pain by Carly Simon.
The tight vocal segment “not quite a year since you went away” from Rosanna by Toto.
The “I’ve been looking for an answer” part of I’ve Been Waiting So Long by Chicago.
Almost any pop song with backed by a black church choir -I Want to Know What Love Is by Foreigner; Lay Down (Candles In the Rain) by Melanie; actually the latter IS virtually the whole song.

How uncool are you?

(Image copped from here.)
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Based on a conversation I had on a bus yesterday, there are a lot of people who think that Daylight Saving Time ends tomorrow. Their calendars even say so. That would be incorrect. It has been moved to NEXT weekend. So don’t be an hour late tomorrow; it’d be uncool.

ROG

ROG

MUSIC AND MOVIES QUESTIONS

I’d appreciate your input in any or all:

1. What one to three CDs should I put on my Christmas wish list, and why?

2. Why are some people so fussy about folks applauding in movie theaters? People can laugh, cry, shriek; why not clap? After all, it’s their $10 and $6 bucket of popcorn, and as long as they’re not talking unnecessarily, I don’t care.

The theory is that the film actors can’t hear the applause; true enough. But neither can the performers hear when you cheer (or curse) your favorite baseball/football/basketball/soccer team whilst seated in front of your television set. Seems like snobbery to me.

3. Have you ever sung karaoke? If so, what are your favorite tunes to sing? If not, what would you sing?
I’ve never done it – though I have sung, with a live band, Disco Inferno (I’d deny it except there are too many witnesses). Probably Take Me To the River. Or maybe this song from the 1968 movie The Night They Raided Minsky’s that apparently was also performed on The Muppet Show:
I have a secret recipe.
Concocted with much skill.
And once you’ve tried our special dish-
You’ll never get your fill.
Take ten terrific girls, but only nine costumes,
And you’re cooking up something grand.
Mix in some amber lights, and elegant scenery-
And stir in a fine jazz band.
Then add some funny men, and pepper with laughter.
It’s tart and tasty I know.
Then serve it piping hot, and what have you got?
A burlesque show.

Or maybe not.

ROG

ROG
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