R.I.P. Davy Jones

Davy Jones passed away today at 66 from a heart attack. I wasn't a huge Monkees fan like my wife Martha who's upset over the news. About 10 years ago we saw the Monkees Reunion Tour at a local theater. Martha had her teenage wish to see them in person finally come true. Michael Nesmith was the only one of the four members who was not present. To be honest, the other three put on such a good show, we didn't miss him. They sang as well as before.

>>>>We had sixth row seats and got pretty close to them when they walked to the front of the stage. Parents our age brought their children to see them as we watched the guys joke between songs. All their hits were presented. Martha remarked that Davy had the energy of two guys together half his age of 56 at the time. I shall never forget this concert because for the finale they played 'I'm Not Your Stepping Stone.' What was so memorable about this song was that the volume was cranked up so high to permanently damage my right ear which was close to a bank of speakers. To this day my ear will hurt if concerts & movies are played too loud. I carry earplugs in anticipation.

>>>>We own the DVD of this tour and we'll have to replay it this weekend. Poor Davy.... Gone too soon.

Damn I'm good!

Michel Hazanavicius accepts the Oscar for best picture for the film "The Artist."

As you see, all of my predictions below came true. Although Viola Davis lost, I said Meryl Streep could 'sneak by' and so she did which makes me sorta right. The show wasn't as good as other years with Billy Crystal but it was still enjoyable seeing Hollywood's royalty decked out on their special evening.

Oscar Time

Jean Dujardin & Berence Bejo in 'The Artist,' the expected favorite to win Oscars in several catagories.

It's Oscar time so you'll know I'll be glued to the TV tonight. I haven't seen most of the films nominated for Best Picture but we got out to see 'The Artist', 'The Help,' and 'Hugo'. So here's my guesstimates for the major awards:

Best Picture: It's a toss between 'The Artist' and 'The Descendents'. 'Hugo' is also a love letter to the days of silent films and Hollywood loves their past. 'The Artist' is the favorite between the two. I expect it to win in several catagories.

Best Actor: A toss between George Clooney and Jean Dujardin.

Best Actress: Viola Davis (unless Meryl Streep sneaks by). We got to see Michelle Williams who was touching as Marilyn Monroe as she captured her vulnerable essence if not her looks. She could be an upset winner if the votes are split between Meryl & Viola.

Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer. His reviews has been the best in years and it's his time for an award since he missed out for 'The Last Station.'

Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer

Best Foreign Film: ' The Separation' (unless there's an Iranian backlash.)

Best Director: Michael Hazanavicus or Alexander Payne.

Best Original Screenplay: Woody Allen or Michael Hazanavicus

Best Music Score: 'The Artist.'

My opinions are based on reviews, articles, and word-of-mouth. So let's see how I do....

I'm back!

I'm going to start writing again. Since my last entry I bought a 42" widescreen Panasonic Viera HDTV and installed AT&T's U-verse. Two years ago my previous cable outfit, Cox removed Turner Classic Movies/TCM from its basic package lineup. I was so angry as well as other viewers I told Cox and my local newspaper I would change to U-verse when it arrived in my neighborhood. It took me a while but I made the move one week after we got the new TV in December. Now I'm enjoying TCM again, a must for film fans and I also have The Sundance Channel that also offers uncut films with no commercials. Sundance shows recent foreign films we've seen in Portsmouth NH or I bought the Criterion DVD. Now I can see them as part of my basic package. We'll still make trips to Portsmouth and I'll wait until Barnes & Noble has their half-price Criterion sales. I don't care if I'm paying a bit more for cable as I have more channels I wanted like BBC America, VH1Classics, and others I never heard of until now. And these are included my basic package of 200 channels. There's a 300 and a 400 package but who's got time to watch all that? I have more than enough now for my tastes and Pay-Per-View when needed. I saved money by bundling cable, phone, and high speed internet. Thank you U-verse!

I highly recommend my Panasonic HDTV TC-L42E3, an LCD/LED combo with a nice picture. My LG DVD Player DN898 upscales to 1080 making DVDs look almost like Blu-Ray. Eventually I'll buy a Blu-Ray player but for now the LG works fine and better than before.

I have so many choices now to DVR that I don't need to go to the theater so often. We did see 'The Artist,' a love letter to the Silent Era which I predict will win several Oscars. I'll be writing about new & old films again. Meanwhile I'm still buying German films made during the Third Reich and books about that era as I mentioned in the previous entry. I've lent some films to German co-workers who've never seen them as some of the propaganda ones are forbidden showing to this day in Germany. As I mentioned not all films were propaganda as my friends are enjoying the musicals, comedies, and historical epics.

I was still writing online while away from here, mostly adding comments on Amazon. I got into a war of words with a customer reviewer over the DVD release of 'House of The Spirits.' Go to: http://www.amazon.com/House-Spirits-Jeremy-Irons/product-reviews/B005CFBZ3O/ref=sr_1_1_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

Writer's Block

I haven't been in a writing mood. We've been to Portsmouth twice and seen a few movies in our area. I've been reading and watching more DVDs. The pile keeps growing faster than I can watch them due to good sales in stores and online with Borders discount coupons. More on these later...

I'm hardly online these days except to do mail, read articles, and chat with a few buddies. I don't enter chat rooms too much because of the room drama and to be frank, small talk bores me. I'd rather spend the time with a good book or watch a DVD. Lately I've taken an interest in German films made during The Third Reich. I own several of them as well as books about them. No I'm not a neo-Nazi but I find these films fascinating as they weren't all propaganda pieces although you can find some politics in the most innocent entertaining ones. More on these later; meanwhile here's a good article explaining about that era: http://www.stanford.edu/group/SHR/5-supp/text/thompson.html#note6

'Hanna' reviewed

Eric Bana & Saoirse Ronan in Hanna. Watch the preview:
http://www.moviefone.com/movie/hanna/51540/main

No this film isn't a Miley Cyrus vehicle although I will admit I watched a few episodes of her TV show while flipping channels. They were entertaining but enough about Hannah Montana....
>>>This Hanna (without the final 'h') was an interesting action thriller starring Saoirse Ronan from Atonement in the title role. The films begins with her hunting a deer in wintry Finland. She feels guilty about her arrow missing her prey's heart allowing it to suffer a slow death and quickly finishes off the job with a gun. (Spoiler Alert - This scene will be repeated at the end but you can see it coming a minute before.) We soon see her performing her martial arts skills with her father Eric Bana who's also responsible for her encyclopedic education. Hanna is no ordinary teenager with her extraordinary survival skills as she seems like someone from another world, and we slowly learn why these two have been in hiding for years.
>>>Meanwhile they are hunted by Cate Blanchette as a nasty CIA boss who knows the secret of Hanna's origin and forced them into hiding for years. Hanna & Dad separate to meet in Germany as now it's their turn to be the hunters. Cate takes her role to heart as the Queen of Mean. Part Wicked Witch, part Ma Barker. You will enjoy this performance probably more than the other two leads but that's not to undervalue them. Villains always have the best parts. This is a balanced trio of good actors meeting the demands of the script: The father as teacher, the student who surpasses the teacher, and the principal who closed their 'school' and wants to eliminate them. Cate's henchmen are as nasty as her if not worse.
>>>There's a fairy tale motif running through the story as well as plenty of action scenes of mortal combat, chases, and torture accompanied by a throbbing score by the Chemical Brothers. The secondary plot concerns the emotional waking of a teenager who has been raised away from civilization and who must learn to adapt with people as Hanna discovers when she tags along with an English family in Morocco on her trek to Germany. Saoirse is convincing here as in her action scenes.
>>>Hanna is a cut above the usual action thriller. Saoirse will amaze you and Cate will give you a good scare.

'Limitless' reviewed

Bradley Cooper in Limitless. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/limitless/1394087/main?icid=mfm_poster

Seeing the preview in the theater attracted us to Limitless. I enjoyed this fast paced thriller. The story is certainly farfetched but it moves so quickly leaving you no time to ponder over its logic and message.

Bradley Cooper who's becoming a major leading man since the unexpected runaway success of The Hangover stars as a would be writer suffering from writer's bloc. The bill collectors are one step away and nothing he does gets him ahead. One day he meets his ex brother-in-law who offers him a pill that will change his life. His mental ability increases at a staggering rate with each dose, demonstrated by neat visual effects. He speedily finishes his novel in four days and develops other abilities like learning languages, playing music, and making financial killings that attract the attention of an arrogant Wall St. mogul played by Robert De Niro who brings him onto his team. His girlfriend who dumped him takes him back and now he's got the whole world waiting for his taking.

Cooper needs more pills not only to expand his mental powers but also to keep them, and there's the danger. Meanwhile he's pursued by a mysterious stranger and a brutal European loan shark who wants his pills, both men creating problems on his way to the top. Toss in an accusation of murder and the complications keep piling up as fast as the plot races.

Cooper's performance and narration hold the fantastic plot together. De Niro gives his usual good performance that steals almost every one of his scenes and has the best lines in the film spouting seasoned advice to his young novice.

This thriller also presents a halfhearted warning about the dangers of addiction as we learn the fate of others who depended on the drug. Will Cooper succumb to its lethal attraction or can he control it? Only the ending lets us know and what an ending! See if you think it's believable.... but remember, it's only a movie and good escapism fueled by wish fulfullment. Ah but if only there was such a drug......