The News Isn’t Good…

There’s a lot of communication on the InterWebs today about the passing of Gene Wilder. We lose good people all the time, but this is one that strikes me.

When I think of these movies;

• The Producers
• Willy Wonka
• Young Frankenstein
• Blazing Saddles
• Silver Streak
• Stir Crazy

I smile and think of how entertaining these movies were, because he was in them. His used car salesman face, while saying an outrageously humorous line, combined with his curly wild hair, added to his comedic delivery. When he starred in a Mel Brooks movie, you knew it was going to be memorable. The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein, come to mind.

If you’ve seen any of his 4 movies with Richard Pryor, you watched one of the great movie comedy pairings. Even when there were serious moments, it was movie magic, with them in it.

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory – Variety Online

For more information, click on this image ->

RIP Jerome Silberman / Gene Wilder
June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016

 

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Silly Things I Think About..

Roswell UFO crash 1947 (alleged photo)

Star Trek Beyond is no longer beyond, at least not beyond us going to see it in theaters. The franchise, Star Trek, has been with us for over 50 years. Several of the original cast are still on Terra Firma. Sadly, a few of them are no longer with us. If there’s life after this one, then perhaps it can be said, they’re exploring strange new worlds. This one is certainly strange, all on its own.

I’ve thought about Start Trek tech since the series started. I always questioned things like, how can they be seeing things on their large flat screen viewer while traveling faster than the speed of light? Aren’t they outrunning any light reflected images? Does the ship anticipate where it must go to travel around planets, asteroids, suns, and debris? No computer system would be able to communicate to the helm faster than light speed.

There are others, but nothing fascinates me more than their short-range transport systems. It was said the idea for teleportation came about due to severe budget limitations of the original series. In order to arrive on a planet, they would have to create transportation that would look good enough on camera. They came up later with some small transport vehicles, which looked like boxes in space. The Transporter idea was sheer genius and harks back to the days when we as kids, could imagine ourselves transporting once we entered a large cardboard box. I suspect Gene Roddenberry recalled those kinds of child play experiences when he came up with the idea.

This does bring into question other ideas I had on the topic of using a device that could disassemble your molecules including DNA sequences, and successfully re-image them somewhere else. The whole process on the surface, sounds slightly possible, but deconstructing molecules, then assembling them, without being in a vacuum, appears to be fraught with potential disasters, such as seen in the movie, “The Fly“.

Then there’s another aspect, which Roddenberry and company left to our imagination, what about the soul? If there’s an ethereal component to humans, as some assert when they say we have a soul, spirit, anything other than our corporeal presence. If any of that is true, and that’s what really animates us as a person, then how do you teleport something which isn’t supposed to be physically definable?

I know this is all too much about too little, but it’s sort of fun. Now, where can I buy a hand phaser? That seems to be very practical device to carry around. We already have tele-communicators and electronic writing tablets.

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The Downside of Social Media

“Charlie Hunnam is a well known actor. In 7 seasons of the television series, Sons of Anarchy, he played a tough biker struggling between living a life in which he seems destined, and wanting to be out of the club living independent with wife and family.

In Pacific Rim, he portrayed a person who operates inside a giant fighting robot, battling in a war with the Kaijus, colossal monsters arising out of the sea.

He’s gained a large fan base, but has been reserved in promoting himself through a social media presence. He has found that many of his so called fans have criticized his girl friend, to the point where he felt it was necessary to speak his mind on how disrespectful and untoward these remarks have become.

Normally I don’t reprint long statements or quotes by someone, but I think the things Mr. Hunnam said, are something everyone that interacts through the Internet should take into consideration.

– – – – – – –

“Dear ladies of social media,

This is a message from Charlie Hunnam. I have no social media so I have asked my good friend and long time supporter Tina Lou to post this message for me.

It has been brought to my attention that there is a group of immature girls posting a large number of hard messages aimed at my long time girlfriend. I would respectfully ask you to stop doing this. She is an intelligent, beautiful, kind person who just tried to live a simple life and has nothing to do with the entertainment industry. If you want to talk shit, talk shit about me, leave her out of it. What is most confusing is that these negative and totally unprovoked attacks appear to be coming from the people who call themselves my fans. Think about the logic of this for a moment. This is a girl I love very much and have spent the last eleven years of my life with and hope to spend the next sixty years. She has been my loyal and supportive partner long before I had any success or money. Why would you attack her out of admiration for me? It makes no sense. Perhaps you might think about spending the time you dedicate on attacking her on improving the quality of your own life, as it is well known that this type of random hatred usually comes from deep rooted personal unhappiness. This about this. Also, I guarantee if you knew her you would feel very silly, as my girlfriend is one of the kindest, nicest, most virtuous people I have ever met. There is literally nothing about her or her behavior that deserves this type of condemnation.

Thank you in advance for respecting this request.

Best Wishes, Charlie Hunnam”

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Last Evening Television

So many of us now have better image and audio in our homes than what you can experience in a theatre. This has pushed the envelope for better set & sound design as well as image quality. Clearly each of us has our own opinion on what we find interesting or entertaining.

Lets review last nights Oscars. What did you like about the show?

Did the issues about diversity get addressed, or is this an attempt by the pampered elite to stay culturally relevant? How do they make sure the right films or people get recognized based on a proportional contribution?

How do you think Chris Rock did in hosting the Oscars? Did he also fall into the stereotype of racial slur?

Highest paid actors of 2105.

What did you think about the environmental message Leonardo DiCaprio gave in his acceptance speech?

Actor Mark Ruffalo has declared certain questions off limits to the media, regarding the sincerity of the actors who advocate a low carbon footprint. Ruffalo was asked in a one-on-one interview with Climate Depot if celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, who boasts that he will fly around the world to fight global warming and former VP Al Gore, are the best spokesmen for global warming, given their huge carbon footprints.

Last nights Oscars amassed a 15-block-radius of limos; “.. chauffers are captains of a sleek, passing fleet of more than 1,200 cars and SUVs that will navigate police perimeters, barricades, bomb squads, helicopter searchlights, hundreds, maybe thousands of fans and probably a few stalkers lingering beyond the paparazzi flash.”

Many attendees were moved by Lady Gagas song from Spotlight. After her musical presentation, many former victims stood hand in hand with the entertainers, but in light of all the revelations about actors, producers, directors and agents who have been accused of numerous sexual abuse crimes, do you think this was another of Hollywood’s attempt to be perceived on the right side of this issue?

High profile Hollywood power players accused of being paedophiles, include Bryan Singer.

Stephen Collins’ Wife Calls Him a ‘Pedophile’.

Molestation Scandal: Hollywood’s Child Sex Abuse Coverup.

Bill Cosby’s accusers tell their stories.

In a recent (2016) movie role, “Dirty Grandpa“, Robert De Niro plays a lecherous former Army Lieutenant-Colonel, a despicable grandfather, for comedic effect. Quite a different message than that of the Academy award winner, Spotlight.

Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

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I Am Not What Happened to Me. I Am What I Choose to Become ~ Carl Jung

 

 

Exploring Movies in Black & White

La Dolce Vita (The Sweet Life – 1960)

I watched a digital restored version of Federico Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita” (1960) recently. I thought I might have a different impression than when I first viewed the film in the 70’s. Unsurprisingly I did, but not in the manner I expected.

What I hoped to find, a better comprehension of what Fellini was trying to say. It has been critiqued by many as a seminal work. Condemned by the Catholic church as a “public sinner”, it’s a completely tame film by today’s standards. What may seem as sinful or self indulgent then, compared to something like, Fifty Shades of Grey, it’s totally innocuous.

Fellini was a celebrated Italian director, most noted for films beginning in the 1950s through the early 80’s. La Strada (1954) got him a lot of attention, and later films such as 8½ (Otto e Mezzo, 1963) and Amarcord (1974), brought International acclaim.

I’ve also viewed an online film, probably not well known, For Lovers Only. I see a similar theme between these two films, even though this later film was most often compared to a 60’s film, A Man and a Woman.

Stana Katic plays Sofia, a journalist and former model, while Mark Polish plays Yves, a former fashion photographer. Each of them start out as depressed and bored people, who while seemingly live well, seek something more in their daily lives. They have family, significant other connections where they live, but now find themselves in a journey of soul searching while visiting France.

As fate or serendipity would have it, these two accidentally meet each other in Paris. It seems they were once star crossed lovers and their passion for each other, along with care free abandon, become the central theme in the film.

Their travels range from Paris, Normandy to St. Tropez. Shot with next to no budget, in Black & White, using a a digital still photography camera, Canon EOS 5D Mark II, with video capability owned by the other brother, Michael. Lighting was done using an iPhone and the sound, clearly the weakest part of the film, by a single boom microphone. Both Stana and Mark chose to take no salary and relied on any profits if the film was a success.  It has been a very successful word of mouth film and has garnered a profit. It has become one of the Top 100 in all independent movies in downloads and rentals on iTunes.

The connection between these two films as I see it, examines the lives of people who are fascinated with living in the moment, don’t seem to have a plan, or a clue as to how to extend this into long term happiness. In some ways, they are as small children, reaching for the candy on the counter but finding only temporarily satisfaction. Fellini wanted to comment on the emptiness of  the lives of many young Italians after WWII. The Polish brothers were more interested in making a film fashioned in the French New Wave of the 50’s and 60’s.

As an independent film, it of course suffers technically, but the actors manage to work through that with a commitment and palpable emotion that reaches beyond the camera lens.

Stana was an unknown to me prior to the hit TV series originating in the US, Castle. She has an ability to have the right inflection, expression and tone for each scene. Yes, she has a stunning appearance, but her acting prowess extends past her looks. As long as she has good material, this is probably someone that will be compelling well into her advanced years.

It’s the acting combination of Mark and Stana which make this film work. Combined with several good musical selections, I think an auteur should take the time to watch this film. It is a film with a strong sexual theme with some nudity, so perhaps those who wish to avoid watching this, may give it a pass.

Each of these movies show life requires more than temporary escape and simple pleasures. The viewer doesn’t know what will ultimately become of them, but they can see the choices each have made have come full circle. Marcello, Yves, and Sofia, are not happier but maybe they can look back at those moments and consider them part of, “the sweet life”.

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Movie Details

• Title: For Lovers Only
• Running Time: 88 Minutes
• Status: Released July 2011
• Country: United States
• Genre: Romance

 

Film Expo Southampton

Tully making telly history

A very good friend of mine, an actress called Gillian Tully was so disappointed with the lacklustre efforts of the region’s film-makers to network and form alliances that she decided to take the bull by the horns and present the south of England’s first ever exhibition of talent and film services.

Gillian, the founder and C.E.O of FILM EXPO SOUTH (F.E.S) has organised for the event to be held at Southampton’s Ageas Bowl intending to not only link the area’s skill set but promote new film-makers and assist in producing and nurturing careers, both new and old.

I asked Gill to define the event. “It’s about raising awareness of what’s happening and who’s doing it”, she said. “It’s about collaboration. It’s about bringing together filmmakers and the talent and services necessary to create and sustain production, along the south coast.”

Why do we need to create a forum here, what’s wrong with utilising London-? It is after all the long-standing hub? “London is very expensive, overcrowded and too condensed. The industry is bigger than London but nobody realised the potential for networking here. it was very disjointed; so we needed a platform to shout from. F.E.S was designed to let the world know what’s happening, shake things up.“

She is fast becoming an icon, a bright shining light in the dank dark depths that is the British film industry- championing film-makers of all background and demographic in the south of England. Gill has campaigned for change and unification of the local industry and will be presenting FILM EXPO SOUTH at the Ageas Bowl in West End in Southampton on the 4th of Feb 2016.

It is the movie industry’s premier event in the south of England, and should later become one of the diary noted primary exhibitions in Europe. Watch this space for new info. Be there.

– Chris

 

Radio Programming – Evolution or Extinction?

Radio broadcast programming has changed throughout the decades of its existence, a reflection of the society in that moment of time. Soon after the invention of radio, which began only carrying the dots and dashes of wireless telegraphy, the transmission of voice ushered in a new era of conveying information and eventually entertainment. As a form of entertainment in the U.S., serialized adventure, romance, drama and comedy found its way into living rooms. Music exposed people to a variety outside of their immediate community and social group. It introduced new ideas and the start of a journey into removing some ethnic barriers.

Fast forward a few decades into the 1950’s, radio was a fully established outlet for music and the personalities which presented the sounds of that era. Commercialization was in full effect and business with their products used it to their advantage. This was also a changing era for radio. Television broadcast towers sprang up in every city of reasonable size. The economy was robust and people were buying their small black & white TV’s in waves. Having caught the attention of the marketing gurus, they soon started buying commercial air time on television stations. This altered the types of radio programs. All of the traditional comedy, serialized drama and western adventures, abandoned radio for the enhanced sensation of visual & audio on TV.

Radio broadcasting continued along as it had before with enhanced scheduled sports and talk formats and targeting audiences with specific genre music. The most significant change for entertainment began with Rock & Roll and the follow on ‘British Invasion’. Young people were targeted as the prime demographic and soon, groups such as The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, Herman’s Hermits, The Animals, and The Who, all filtered their way into youthful listening. Technology improvements in the size of sound reproduction equipment as well as cost helped propel radio broadcasting through this change.

Technology is a two-edged sword. What was a boon to radio would soon render pink slips to many broadcast personalities. Some of them were able to transition, but most would have to leave radio or never be in front of the mic again. Digital met analog in a big way beginning in the 1980’s. Portability, distribution and pre-recorded formats altered the landscape once again. The CD era may have been the warning bell of this change but the advent of a new communication media spread this well beyond what most anticipated. The Internet with its limitless boundaries and variety meant that most broadcast formats were no longer attracting a sizable audience. Many individual radio stations recognized local programming wasn’t working and many were bought by larger companies with aggregate (national) programming format. The entire AM radio band was the first to make this change to syndicated talk formats. It’s interesting to note the conservative talk show dominates the AM airwaves as well as many FM stations. The progression of technology has obsoleted most of the traditional radio leaving it to listeners of those most resistant to change.

There are some broadcasters seeing a new wave coming. This radio format isn’t seen as an overwhelming commercial renewal as many once experienced decades earlier, but the way forward may be viable through this option. Local radio once was an important component of successful broadcasting, it gave way to national entertainment programs. Television became the attraction for these early entertainers and programs such as Bob Hope, Burns & Allen, Ozzie & Harriet, the Lone Ranger, Superman, Gunsmoke, and many others. Just as this evolution forced radio out of these entertainment formats, so too is the Internet for music and talk.

What once was old may be new. Local broadcasting can be attractive to a wider audience by using the Internet. Recent format changes of a local University Public Broadcasting station to the traditional PB talk / news format has actually alienated many within the community. The digital broadcast over the Internet has fueled added interest in the web based very popular student run station. WRAS 88.5 FM in Atlanta Georgia had the rug pulled out from under the students who were in charge of format and presentation. The University leadership in its finite wisdom, decided to sell all daytime broadcast time to Public Broadcasting, leaving the students with later evening and wee hour time through FM radio. Having gained a strong following as well as a national reputation of helping to launch local musicians, the student body have continued through the Internet HD ‘cast. Undeterred, the students are still making things happen in a former traditional market.

So how does this point to a viable future in the radio broadcast industry? By accepting the realities of the digital era, local radio can leverage the Internet through simulcast when and where possible. Bringing local entertainers to the national stage with solid community relations and open formats to the more experimental gives an opportunity for new creativity as we once saw in the 1950’s and 60’s. This dissemination to anyone who can access the Internet opens the local to the world. Placing these venues in live local performance and allowing the entertainers to hone their skills with broadcast over the Internet may be one of several steps to revamping radio. Even as I write this I’m listening to BBC Radio 2 live in Hyde Park. Proof that local is of interest to a far wider audience.

 

More of the Same – Hollywood Do

Hollywood splashed out to bring us another (yawn) thrilling (yawn) Academy Awards presentation last night. In case you missed it, here’s the rundown.

– Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave
– Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyers Club”
– Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón, “Gravity”
– Best Writing, Original Screenplay: Spike Jonze, “Her”
– Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay: John Ridley “12 Years a Slave”
– Music, Best Original Song: Music and Lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez, “Let it Go,” from “Frozen”
– Music, Best Original Score: Steven Price, “Gravity”
– Best Production Design: “The Great Gatsby”
– Best Film Editing: Mark Sanger & Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity”
– Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, “Gravity”
– Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”
– Best Sound Editing: “Gravity”
– Best Sound Mixing: “Gravity”
– Best Foreign Language Film: “The Great Beauty”
– Best Documentary Feature: “20 Feet From Stardom”
– Best Documentary – Short Subject: “The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life”
– Best Short Film – Live Action: “Helium”
– Best Visual Effects: “Gravity”
– Best Animated Feature Film: “Frozen”
– Best Short Film – Animated: “Mr. Hublot”
– Best Makeup and Hairstyling: “Dallas Buyers Club”
– Best Costume Design: “The Great Gatsby”
– Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Were there any surprises for you?

Latest The Amazing Spiderman 2 trailer

 

What happened to the romantic comedy genre?

The staple of Hollywood movies was often the romance comedy. This has been part of the entertainment film industry’s method to break open new opportunities to either show off new talent or present another side to an actors CV. The past decade or so has seen a visible decline that others have commented on as well.

“The meet-cute is dead,” agrees Seeking a Friend for the End of the World producer and manager Joy Gorman. “The only ones that have a chance are ones with a very fresh take.” ~ Hollywood Reporter

I have to step in and offer my two cents on this as well. The most obvious reason I see is the financial need to turn out blockbuster movies. A film is considered a dud if it doesn’t make huge returns from the box office.

Making films of quality is an expensive proposition and the accountant side of the equation influences what gets made. The big block busters for now seem to revolve around comic book or science fiction and some action/adventure repeats. We see these typically in at least trilogy format. There just doesn’t seem to be those sort of coat tails for romance comedy.

I believe it goes further than this as much of what works in the American cinema doesn’t necessarily work that well for European and Asian markets. Romance Comedy often relies on cultural verbal or visual gags or reference to some current event. These don’t always translate well. Hollywood now looks to foreign markets for more than 50% of the gross.

Cute isn’t all of what it was once considered as refreshing. Now pessimism and snark is in and clever lines with flirty behavior just doesn’t seem to have the sizzle. We’ve gone past innuendo or oblique references. The thing to do is make your lines reach out and deliver punch not warmth or intelligence.

Jimmy Stewart in Harvey – comedy

Will the romantic comedy find its way back into the movie house? I’m sure the repeated comic book hero genre will eventually wear out its welcome and the entertainment industry will once again resurrect the genre in order to find a marketable vehicle. It may come in the form of something with a twist such as a homosexual theme or transgender. Things are changing all over, Hollywood moves with the times.

Related Links

• Why Harry Won’t Meet Sally
• Can the Romantic Comedy Be Saved?
• The 100 best romantic movies

 

The Brits Have Landed

Which TV Shows Do You Obsess Over?

The U.K. seems to have declared war on boring Television and have come up with mysteries, drama and comedy that frequently stand above the rest in creative, intelligent or wildly insane concept. How they arrive at the final product is a journey difficult for others to emulate. In the U.S. we’ve tried, usually with limited success. Life on Mars, Top Gear and Coupling for example haven’t been all that well received after import and rewrite in the U.S. The original shows however, do find audience in the U.S.

“We have our factory, which is called a stage. We make a product, we color it, we title it and we ship it out in cans.“ — Cary Grant

We’ve seen excellent versions of Sherlock Holmes in movies with Robert Downey Jr. and an American TV version “Elementary”, altered with Lucy Liu as Watson. Both of those are prime examples of successful imports however, I think the TV series, Sherlock, beginning in 2010 has captured the American and U.K. audience with tremendous appreciation of the intelligent writing and flavorful characterizations by all actors in the series.

I have to admit almost a school boy crush on Lucy Liu, so for me Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock Holmes is merely a vehicle in which I get to watch Lucy Liu act as Watson.

A Sherlock moment meant to pique the interest of more than a few fans…
About 7 minutes in length.

Sherlock Resources … Lock these away in your mind palace…

• BBC Site
• PBS Site
• John Watson Diary
• Science of Deduction
• DVD Release in U.S.
• Sherlockology Air Date Guide

Right after the series of Sherlock as one of my favorite were the Inspector Lynley Mysteries. Another well written show with top-notch actors. An interesting twist on authorship, it was written by an American. She understood her subject matter and it translated well to the screen.

Adrian Lester, Robert Glenister, Robert Vaughn, Jaime Murray, & Marc Warren. All rights owned BBC.

Hustle is a British television drama series which only found audience in the U.S. for 4 of it’s 8 seasons. It was broadcast from 2004 to 2012 and I’ve only been able to obtain the first 4 seasons on DVD. I enjoyed the clever interaction and banter among the characters as they devise new or reworked clever schemes to separate wealthy people from their money. Of course Jaime Murray was easy on the eyes. I hope they will eventually authorize all seasons in DVD & Blue-Ray for Region 1.

Andrew Scott as Jim Moriarty

RELATED LINKS

• BBC one Hustle
• The Inspector Lynley Mysteries
• BBC’s Luther – Idris Elba
• A gear heads delight – Top Gear
• Life on Mars – BBC one
• Lucy Liu – more than just a pretty face
• Elementary TV