A Hologram for the King

A Hologram for the King Review

If you haven't taken the opportunity to see A Hologram for the King starring Tom Hanks, you should make the time. It is a lovely film about turning points and finding new direction. I also happen to think it is a great date night movie.

Tom Hanks give his usual outstanding performance, but I really enjoyed the supporting characters. The editing really gives you the feeling of days passing without change despite all of the little elements that are in fact changing. Watch for the guard at the entrance to the city.

The story tackles the concept of globalization in a more abstract way than I had expected from previews. I think you will find that very interesting as much as Allen's growing relationship with his drive Yusef.

Enjoy.

Eddie the Eagle

Eddie the Eagle is Why I Love IRL Stories

The reason I love films like the one I saw this afternoon, Eddie the Eagle, is that remind us to try and celebrate personal bests. Participating and loving what we do allows us to achieve more than we dreamt possible. You can't become better unless you do and fail, get up and do it again.

Eddie dreamed of medaling at the Olympics and his mother encouraged him at every opportunity. His father was like most, and only wanted to see his son settle into 'real life' with a job and maybe a family. It is his belief in this dream that pushes him to fight the British Olympic committee for a place on the team. They pushed out the finish line never expecting that he was devoted enough to meet their demands.

Despite some foul language, the film is a good choice for your family. Might not hold the attention of some youngsters, but the message will be worth it in the end. 

Hello, My Name is Doris

Hello, My Name is Doris Review

Watched Hello, My Name is Doris today. Really identified with character's struggle with finding purpose. It's so hard to start over and finding the momentum to continue can be even more difficult. So many of us start over in our careers or in our lives because of things outside of our control. What is admirable about Doris is that she start making over her life because of a kinship she feels with a much younger man.

Sadly, he doesn't return her feelings and Doris makes the choice to finally leave her dead end job and walk away from her crush. This was a tear-jerker for me, so I advise you bring some tissues along. Also, this is NFK (Not For Kids) due to some language and adult situations.

London Has Fallen and Zootopia

This woman hasn't been to the movies nearly enough this year.  Sadly, pneumonia, a car accident, and several colds caused me to think of the well being of others first.  I did finally get out to see Zootopia and London Has Fallen.  Two very different films but both positively screaming political messages at their audiences.  Even my husband felt like he was being hit over the head.

The first on our weekend binge was London Has Fallen, sequel to Olympus Has Fallen, didn't disappoint with its gratuitous violence, explosions, and high body count.  However, the idea that western leaders couldn't be kept safe on the ground in the United Kingdom is somewhat distasteful.  I realize that the scenario played out in the film is unlikely, but it is certainly something that our allies do think about anytime there is a state function such as the funeral in the film.  How arrogant are we as Americans to tell our allies that only we can solve such a crime without assitance on their soil?

Yes, a MI6 agent wraps up the film by taking out the traitor, but the Americans in the story are the ones that wrap up the final loose end after taking out all of the foot soldiers during the rest of the film.  To me this was a 'we're better than you' story that felt way over the top.  I would have liked to see more interaction between the Americans and our allies throughout.  London Has Fallen did an excellent job of making the UK officials look like idiots.  I don't think this film will play well overseas when you consider that angle.

The day after watching London Has Fallen, my husband and I took in Zootopia.  This film follows the classic theme of overcoming prejudice.  What I found more interesting was how the story takes places the inexperienced junior officer in front of the press without preperation or a senior officer taking the hard questions.  It really showed how a few words can twist the whole view of a case.  Of course it is the bunny's friend that calls her on her statements.

Ultimately, the film shows that it is a disenfranchised member of the second class that is pulling all of the strings.  The ending shows a 'happy ever after moment' with the aforementioned fox and bunny as partners on the force.  What the film fails to address is that the original media frenzy caused by the bunny's statements about predator DNA would likely continue reverberate through the population even after the fox joins the police force.

It would seem to me that there would be a large segment of the population that would resist the addition of another predator on their police force.  To say nothing of the hate crimes that would plunge the city into chaos before the crime is finally solved.  Of course, this is a 'kids' movie so it is unlikely that a discussion of that was ever on the script table.

Both films are worth seeing, but both smack the viewer over the head with their messages.  Of the two I preferred Zootopia.  The fox's story really resonated with me because those moments stick with the victim their entire lives.  It colors everything those indiviuals experience and how they teach their children, the good and the bad.  I like that the writers showed both main characters as being flawed but finding ways to overcome those flaws to connect.  This is a lovely message for all of us and that is why I like this film.

Ender's Game - Getting Preachy Hollywood

I recently re-watched "Ender's Game."  I haven't read the book, but I love how the film unfolds.  It is an interesting story and told beautifully.  The end surprised me the first time, but I was so caught up in the film that I missed the clues that normally tell me within minutes how a film will end, including major plot twists.  If you haven't seen it, I won't deprive you of making your own discovery.

Let me just say that "Ender's Game" vividly depicts the arrogance regularly displayed by those in power who think they know the only solution or are too scared by what they don't understand to consider any other actions. These criminals create an environment of nondisclosure that deprives their students of the knowledge they should have before following certain orders.  And in effect, create unwilling criminals from those students.  There is a single line uttered by Ender in the final act of the film that resonates so much with me that I feel more than sympathy for the character.  I empathize with him.

Every day some new revelation emerges from our government and corporate America that is so similar to how the plot evolves in "Ender's Game" that I'm astonished by how many people still go with the flow.  We are losing our privacy under the guise of anti-terrorism and falling prey to the worst kinds of fear.  How else can Trump be considered anything more than a arrogant and egotistical man running for office?  We want full disclosure from our officials without the fear mongering that is dancing through media headlines, unfortunately we have to do our own research to understand even half of what the media chooses to discuss.  I just hope that we engage our brains a little bit more and question why before we are held accountable by the people who will suffer because we didn't do our due diligence.

Lego Brickumentary

Lego Brickumentory - 1pip

Watched the Lego Brickumentory last night. It was really very good both as a documentary and entertainment. I laughed quite a bit and discovered some aspects of Lego I didn't expect. You can find it on Hulu. It's a perfect way to introduce your children to documentary.

On the Subject of Marriage

The next few weeks could be pivotal in our nation's history.  We are witnessing two epic court battles taking place this week and next.  Today the Supreme Court heard the case regarding California's Proposition 8, the one that banned gay marriage in my state back in 2008, when it wasn't my state.  Then I still lived in Ohio, home to most Wiccans in the country and yet, continues to be one of the states that hasn't yet allowed same sex unions.

No let's try to understand something here.  Pro gay marriage/same sex unions or not, there is something everybody needs to remember about how the institution of marriage came about.  Those opposed to gay marriage claim it was a gift from God, that it is a religious right, that is for the procreation of children.  I understand why you must believe that, even I was trained by society and religion to believe that way. 

Growing up I could never understand why a person would be unloved by the being that created him.  As an artist I was often told to "kill your babies."  In this case I was the creator and my babies were my pieces of art.  There is NOTHING that hurts more than to destroy, change, or hide from the light of day that which my own hands brought to life.  Some of those art pieces have found a new life in other works or because my Mom loves to brag about her kids.

Considered at the level of humanity... The idea of hiding a person because she is flawed at first glance is horrifying.  To ask a person to change what makes him unique and special, just as bad a prospect.  Those self same people that refuse to grant the privileges they themselves enjoy are just as bad as those that hide a child because of her perceived deformities.  It is one of many ways to say "I'm better than you."  This battle keeps being fought over and over again.  A real shame we haven't learned from the past.

Now, for what has inspired me to write this inflammatory blog instead of my usual periodic piece about movies and movie making.  For those that know me personally, you know how hard it was for me to accept marriage and all its trappings.  I went so far as to tell my husband, before we married, that I was not going to allow my Dad to walk me down the aisle.  My husband was horrified and refused to marry me if I did not allow my father that special privilege.  What followed was one of our most memorable arguments, at least for me.  I accepted his proposal for many reason, not the least of which were the legal, finacial, and social protections granted by entering into this contract.  It also made him happy, a significant consideration as it is for many couples.

You may think it was crazy for me to make that statement but my reasoning is this:  Before the time of God, before the Bible and many other religious works were written society was developing.  Within that society children were bartering chips.  They were used to cement social contracts between families and tribes.  When that wasn't enough, goods and property were attached to cement the contract or to make a proposed contact more advantageous for both parties.  Now for my particular dislike of the institution.  Eventually, girls were so devalued in this patriarchal society that they needed dowries before a man of good standing would consider her as a wife. In a sense a man was bribed to accept a girl into his family and that same girl was sold by her family for social/financial/political reasons.

This "God given Sacrament" or the Genesis chapter, often quoted in marriage ceremonies, that claims this contract as one granted by a supreme being for the single purpose of bringing children into our world was written in a time when women had very little power over their destinies.  I honestly feel that these beliefs stemmed from loving fathers attempting to calm their children's fears.  Now we understand that women can write their own contracts and parents aren't as intrinsically involved in marriage contracts.

Gay/ same sex couples are being denied by much of our country the social rights and legal responsibilities granted to married heterosexual couples.  Those social, financial, and legal rights and responsibilities are what give the institution of marriage it's significance.  So why can't we as a nation define marriage as what it really is, a social/political/economic contract between two individuals with all the rights and responsibilities covered by it.  Religious views have no bearing on this in THIS country, otherwise such contracts could ONLY be entered into with a religious figure standing as witness or conducting the verbal portion of the contract.

After all, why shouldn't gay couples reap all the benefits and heartaches that come with marriage?  A lot of heterosexual marriages result in broken contracts, in divorces, that damage both individuals and any offspring. Why should we deny the father of a gay child the privilege of walking that child down the aisle and standing witness to a contract born from love and genuine respect for another person.  And better still, how about the pitfalls of bringing two families together?  I dearly hope the supreme law of our land defines marriage appropriately and saves my country from the bloodshed, fear, and anger that was required before Civil Rights were defined.