Joseph Baneth Allen's Blog, page 22
December 30, 2024
Aporia
Just finished watching "Aporia" released by Armian Pictures.
Aporia is a Greek term for a puzzle, impasse, or doubt, often used in philosophy and rhetoric.
I first learned of this little gem of a time-travel movie that incorporates the unintended consequences of what happens when ordinary people use time travel to correct the tragedies of their lives from a YouTube review of underrated science fiction movies.
Eight months after the death of her husband Malcolm, Sophie Rice is suffering from severe depression and a strained relationship with her daughter Riley. She is also frustrated that Darby Brinkley, the drunk driver who hit and killed Malcolm, has not suffered any legal repercussions for the death. Malcom's best friend, physicist Jabir Karim, shows Sophie a machine that he and Malcom built at his house while attempting to create a time machine. Jabir explains that the machine is capable of sending a subatomic particle to a designated space and time in the past, which will kill any living being that it appears within. While the machine is not yet powerful enough to achieve his ultimate goal, to kill the man responsible for the death of his family ten years prior, he tells Sophie that they can use it to kill Darby at a time before the accident, thus preventing Malcolm's death. While initially incredulous, Sophie eventually agrees to the idea and the two activate the machine together. They are subsequently delighted to discover that it worked, creating a new timeline where Malcolm never died. Only Sophie and Jabir remember the previous timeline, and Jabir deduces that those present in the room when the machine is activated retain their memories of the unaltered timeline.
While Sophie is initially overjoyed at having Malcolm back, she begins to be disturbed by many minor, unanticipated changes to the timeline that also occurred as a result of killing Darby, and eventually admits to Malcolm what she and Jabir did to save him. While Jabir and Malcom continue to improve the machine, the three of them debate the ethics of using it, and what they should do. Jabir realizes that he cannot use it to save his family as planned, as doing so would create a timeline where the machine was never built and thus negate any of the other changes made using it. He instead advocates using it to erase mass murders from history by preemptively killing the perpetrators. The other two are wary of this idea, with Sophie being particularly worried about the unintended consequences that could result from further changes to the past.
Sophie learns that Darby's widow, Kara, and her young daughter, Aggie, are destitute in the current timeline due to Darby's unexpected death. Feeling guilty that she altered their lives for the worse, she befriends them and attempts to help them as best she can. After learning that Aggie suffers from multiple sclerosis, and that Kara is now struggling to pay for her medical care, Sophie, Malcolm, and Jabir resolve to use the machine to help them. Malcolm proposes that they kill the con man that had tricked Kara into losing her bakery years in the past. The three agree to this plan, and after using the machine, confirm that Kara and Aggie are now running a successful bakery together. Shortly after this, however, Malcolm and Sophie are horrified to discover that this change to the timeline has resulted in their daughter no longer existing, with them now having a son instead. Sophie realizes that as she and Malcolm have no memories from this new timeline, it would be unfair for their son to be raised by parents who do not know him.
Sophie, Malcolm, and Jabir eventually agree that Jabir should use the machine to save his family, in order to create a new timeline in which the machine was never created. By activating the machine alone, only he would retain his memories, and the other two would have their memories altered to fit the new timeline. While they don't know what the new timeline will be like, Sophie and Malcolm express their hopes to each other that they will both be alive and with their daughter as Jabir activates the machine.
In the new timeline, Sophie arrives home from work and smiles as she enters the front door of her house.
"Aporia" ends without revealing Sophie's new timeline
"Aporia" is a quiet exploration of the unintended consequences of time travel used for "good" intentions.
Strongly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Aporia-Judy-Gr...
Aporia is a Greek term for a puzzle, impasse, or doubt, often used in philosophy and rhetoric.
I first learned of this little gem of a time-travel movie that incorporates the unintended consequences of what happens when ordinary people use time travel to correct the tragedies of their lives from a YouTube review of underrated science fiction movies.
Eight months after the death of her husband Malcolm, Sophie Rice is suffering from severe depression and a strained relationship with her daughter Riley. She is also frustrated that Darby Brinkley, the drunk driver who hit and killed Malcolm, has not suffered any legal repercussions for the death. Malcom's best friend, physicist Jabir Karim, shows Sophie a machine that he and Malcom built at his house while attempting to create a time machine. Jabir explains that the machine is capable of sending a subatomic particle to a designated space and time in the past, which will kill any living being that it appears within. While the machine is not yet powerful enough to achieve his ultimate goal, to kill the man responsible for the death of his family ten years prior, he tells Sophie that they can use it to kill Darby at a time before the accident, thus preventing Malcolm's death. While initially incredulous, Sophie eventually agrees to the idea and the two activate the machine together. They are subsequently delighted to discover that it worked, creating a new timeline where Malcolm never died. Only Sophie and Jabir remember the previous timeline, and Jabir deduces that those present in the room when the machine is activated retain their memories of the unaltered timeline.
While Sophie is initially overjoyed at having Malcolm back, she begins to be disturbed by many minor, unanticipated changes to the timeline that also occurred as a result of killing Darby, and eventually admits to Malcolm what she and Jabir did to save him. While Jabir and Malcom continue to improve the machine, the three of them debate the ethics of using it, and what they should do. Jabir realizes that he cannot use it to save his family as planned, as doing so would create a timeline where the machine was never built and thus negate any of the other changes made using it. He instead advocates using it to erase mass murders from history by preemptively killing the perpetrators. The other two are wary of this idea, with Sophie being particularly worried about the unintended consequences that could result from further changes to the past.
Sophie learns that Darby's widow, Kara, and her young daughter, Aggie, are destitute in the current timeline due to Darby's unexpected death. Feeling guilty that she altered their lives for the worse, she befriends them and attempts to help them as best she can. After learning that Aggie suffers from multiple sclerosis, and that Kara is now struggling to pay for her medical care, Sophie, Malcolm, and Jabir resolve to use the machine to help them. Malcolm proposes that they kill the con man that had tricked Kara into losing her bakery years in the past. The three agree to this plan, and after using the machine, confirm that Kara and Aggie are now running a successful bakery together. Shortly after this, however, Malcolm and Sophie are horrified to discover that this change to the timeline has resulted in their daughter no longer existing, with them now having a son instead. Sophie realizes that as she and Malcolm have no memories from this new timeline, it would be unfair for their son to be raised by parents who do not know him.
Sophie, Malcolm, and Jabir eventually agree that Jabir should use the machine to save his family, in order to create a new timeline in which the machine was never created. By activating the machine alone, only he would retain his memories, and the other two would have their memories altered to fit the new timeline. While they don't know what the new timeline will be like, Sophie and Malcolm express their hopes to each other that they will both be alive and with their daughter as Jabir activates the machine.
In the new timeline, Sophie arrives home from work and smiles as she enters the front door of her house.
"Aporia" ends without revealing Sophie's new timeline
"Aporia" is a quiet exploration of the unintended consequences of time travel used for "good" intentions.
Strongly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Aporia-Judy-Gr...
December 29, 2024
In The Moons of Borea
Just finished reading "In The Moons of Borea" by Brian Lumley, published by Jove Publications, Inc., when in was first released back in 1979.
Yes, I read "In The Moons Of Borea" as one of the many books I have piled away as part of my on-going "Great Re-Reading of the Favorite Books from my Youth" Project.
While I did obtain my reading copy for Chamblin's Bookmine, I originally purchased it when it first hit the shelves of the new arrivals shelves in the Science Fiction and Fantasy section of Michele's Bookstore in the Bryn Myar Shopping Center in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
For those who may be wondering, I actually didn't catch any "grief" from Mr. Branch, the assistant principal of Camp Lejeune High School back then because he had been ever so foolish as to reach out to Dad over how I addressed an envelope. To save a bit of money, the school administration hit upon the novel idea to have students in their homeroom address envelopes with the monthly newsletter, which I did. We lived in base housing at the time, so it really was a simple task. Yet Mr. Branch and some unknown person decided to complicate matters.
I was called into the his office and Mr. Branch informed me that he had contacted Dad and his Commanding Officer to come to the school over the address I had written on the envelope. I had made the envelope out to Mom and Dad with our address on it.
Mr. Branch informed me that I was going to be put in my place once and for all because everyone knew my father was enlisted because I was too nice to be an officer's brat and that my obviously lie about my father being an USMC Officer was going to be nipped in the bud and I would finally learn my place.
I just looked at him and muttered "your funeral." We waited.
Dad and his Commanding Officer arrived about 45 minutes later. I was sitting in Mr. Branch's office the whole time.
Not only was my father a high ranking officer, but he was on the Commanding General's staff at Camp Lejeune, and you guessed it, the base's commanding general was his Command Officer.
Once they arrived Mr. Branch triumphantly held up the envelope as proof of my bad behavior with our address on it. Dad and the General looked at the envelope, looked at me, back at each other and Dad told me to leave and close the door behind me - which I did. I did hear some rather interesting profanity on the way back to class and after encountering Dad just that one time, Mr. Branch never bothered me again after that.
Looking back it always bothered me that I was a straight A student who never got in trouble, was respectful in class, always did my homework, ran track, was the editor of the school newspaper, never did drugs or drank alcohol, got accepted into the college of my choice during my Sophomore year in high school, earned a four-year academic scholarship from the Marine Corps Foundation , but I was somehow a defective human being.
While I was writing this, I wondered for a moment what ever happened to the class president, who was accepted into the Coast Guard Academy, but was a druggie who smoked pot, who was adored by Mr. Branch.
So if stupid Mr. Branch actually did see me reading "In The Moons of Borea" after encountering Dad, who probably instinctively knew by this time not to play stupid games and win stupid prizes.
"In The Moons of Borea" is the fifth volume of Lumley's Titus Crow six-volume-saga.
Henri de Marigny's journey in the Clock of Dreams in search of his long lost missing friend Titus Crow, has arrived to the universe where Borea, who is ruled over by the old one Ithaqua, the Wind Walker. de Marigny lands on Borea and promptly is rescued by Hank Silberhutte, who is now married to Armandra, Ithaqua's daughter, and helps her defend her world against her evil father.
Yet de Marigny's rescue brings Ithaqua's notice, and the dark god steals the timeclock and hides it on one of Borea's moons, leading a daring mission to retrieve the Clock of Dreams.
Strongly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Moons-Borea-Br...
Yes, I read "In The Moons Of Borea" as one of the many books I have piled away as part of my on-going "Great Re-Reading of the Favorite Books from my Youth" Project.
While I did obtain my reading copy for Chamblin's Bookmine, I originally purchased it when it first hit the shelves of the new arrivals shelves in the Science Fiction and Fantasy section of Michele's Bookstore in the Bryn Myar Shopping Center in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
For those who may be wondering, I actually didn't catch any "grief" from Mr. Branch, the assistant principal of Camp Lejeune High School back then because he had been ever so foolish as to reach out to Dad over how I addressed an envelope. To save a bit of money, the school administration hit upon the novel idea to have students in their homeroom address envelopes with the monthly newsletter, which I did. We lived in base housing at the time, so it really was a simple task. Yet Mr. Branch and some unknown person decided to complicate matters.
I was called into the his office and Mr. Branch informed me that he had contacted Dad and his Commanding Officer to come to the school over the address I had written on the envelope. I had made the envelope out to Mom and Dad with our address on it.
Mr. Branch informed me that I was going to be put in my place once and for all because everyone knew my father was enlisted because I was too nice to be an officer's brat and that my obviously lie about my father being an USMC Officer was going to be nipped in the bud and I would finally learn my place.
I just looked at him and muttered "your funeral." We waited.
Dad and his Commanding Officer arrived about 45 minutes later. I was sitting in Mr. Branch's office the whole time.
Not only was my father a high ranking officer, but he was on the Commanding General's staff at Camp Lejeune, and you guessed it, the base's commanding general was his Command Officer.
Once they arrived Mr. Branch triumphantly held up the envelope as proof of my bad behavior with our address on it. Dad and the General looked at the envelope, looked at me, back at each other and Dad told me to leave and close the door behind me - which I did. I did hear some rather interesting profanity on the way back to class and after encountering Dad just that one time, Mr. Branch never bothered me again after that.
Looking back it always bothered me that I was a straight A student who never got in trouble, was respectful in class, always did my homework, ran track, was the editor of the school newspaper, never did drugs or drank alcohol, got accepted into the college of my choice during my Sophomore year in high school, earned a four-year academic scholarship from the Marine Corps Foundation , but I was somehow a defective human being.
While I was writing this, I wondered for a moment what ever happened to the class president, who was accepted into the Coast Guard Academy, but was a druggie who smoked pot, who was adored by Mr. Branch.
So if stupid Mr. Branch actually did see me reading "In The Moons of Borea" after encountering Dad, who probably instinctively knew by this time not to play stupid games and win stupid prizes.
"In The Moons of Borea" is the fifth volume of Lumley's Titus Crow six-volume-saga.
Henri de Marigny's journey in the Clock of Dreams in search of his long lost missing friend Titus Crow, has arrived to the universe where Borea, who is ruled over by the old one Ithaqua, the Wind Walker. de Marigny lands on Borea and promptly is rescued by Hank Silberhutte, who is now married to Armandra, Ithaqua's daughter, and helps her defend her world against her evil father.
Yet de Marigny's rescue brings Ithaqua's notice, and the dark god steals the timeclock and hides it on one of Borea's moons, leading a daring mission to retrieve the Clock of Dreams.
Strongly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Moons-Borea-Br...
DC Jones and Adventure Command Control Your TV Set
Just finished reading "DC Jones and Adventure Command Control Your TV Set" by Jim Beard, published by Becky Books.
Beard's DC Jones novels are an open love letter to the boys' Adventure toys of the early 70s (G.I. Joe, Big Jim., etc). In volume 4, Beard pays tribute to the live action and animated series of the 1970s - The Six Million Dollar Man, etc. - that often accompanied those toys. Spun as the only surviving "novelizations" of a handful of episodes of the "long lost" Adventure Command International one season TV series, this book has everything those shows had: weird science gadgets, mid-episode cliffhangers, episode plots that touch on sensitive issues for that era in American culture -Single parenthood! Small town prejudice! Teenage delinquency! - set against the backdrop of an alien invasion - similar to the classic "The Invaders" television show.
Great Fun! I'm looking forward to seeing how Beard movies DC Jones and Adventure Command International in the next novel which will see "Adventure Command versus Super-Adventure Command."
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/D-C-Jones-Adve...
Beard's DC Jones novels are an open love letter to the boys' Adventure toys of the early 70s (G.I. Joe, Big Jim., etc). In volume 4, Beard pays tribute to the live action and animated series of the 1970s - The Six Million Dollar Man, etc. - that often accompanied those toys. Spun as the only surviving "novelizations" of a handful of episodes of the "long lost" Adventure Command International one season TV series, this book has everything those shows had: weird science gadgets, mid-episode cliffhangers, episode plots that touch on sensitive issues for that era in American culture -Single parenthood! Small town prejudice! Teenage delinquency! - set against the backdrop of an alien invasion - similar to the classic "The Invaders" television show.
Great Fun! I'm looking forward to seeing how Beard movies DC Jones and Adventure Command International in the next novel which will see "Adventure Command versus Super-Adventure Command."
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/D-C-Jones-Adve...
The Matter of Everything - How Curiosity, Physics and Improbable Experiments Changed The World
Just finished reading "The Matter of Everything - How Curiosity, Physics and Improbable Experiments Changed The World" by Suzie Sheehy, published by Alfred A. Knopf, Publisher.
On a side note, on a recent outing with Jeff H. at the nearby Barnes & Noble where I live, he was surprised and a bit bemused to see me take photos of books I was interested in instead of purchasing them, like I used to years and years ago when we frequented the bookstore. Once he found out that I no longer have an annual membership at Barnes& Noble - too pricey - and that I usually buy my books online at Amazon.com where the discount is usually better than just 10% off, Jeff did appreciate the logic.
Sheehy is a physicist and science communicator with ties to research groups at the University of Oxford and the University of Melbourne. She explores how "big picture science" impacts the everyday world by exploring how level past experiments take us from the very earliest simple experiments often done on wooden benches in dank dark labs in basements of buildings by scientists we have all heard of, to the gleaming mega structures 10’s of kms long under the Alps, namely CERN and the Tevatron and looking at and exploring how those discoveries have impacted the world.
An excellent history of physics and how it evolved into combining with medicine and other scientific disciplines.
Strongly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Matter-Everyth...
On a side note, on a recent outing with Jeff H. at the nearby Barnes & Noble where I live, he was surprised and a bit bemused to see me take photos of books I was interested in instead of purchasing them, like I used to years and years ago when we frequented the bookstore. Once he found out that I no longer have an annual membership at Barnes& Noble - too pricey - and that I usually buy my books online at Amazon.com where the discount is usually better than just 10% off, Jeff did appreciate the logic.
Sheehy is a physicist and science communicator with ties to research groups at the University of Oxford and the University of Melbourne. She explores how "big picture science" impacts the everyday world by exploring how level past experiments take us from the very earliest simple experiments often done on wooden benches in dank dark labs in basements of buildings by scientists we have all heard of, to the gleaming mega structures 10’s of kms long under the Alps, namely CERN and the Tevatron and looking at and exploring how those discoveries have impacted the world.
An excellent history of physics and how it evolved into combining with medicine and other scientific disciplines.
Strongly Recommended!
Five Stars!
https://www.amazon.com/Matter-Everyth...
December 28, 2024
All This I Will Give To You
Just finished watching "All This I Will Give To You" released by MHz Networks.
"All This I Will Give to You" is an intense limited French mystery mini-series based on the award-winning, international bestselling novel by Dolores Redondo. After a fatal car crash on a rural road claims the life of Aymeric his handsome family estate is left to his equally handsome and grief-stricken husband, the renowned Parisian author Manuel Manuel is shocked not only by his husband’s death, but also by the fact that he was the son of a wealthy landowner – something Aymeric kept secret from him. Aymeric was supposed to have been on a business trip to Brussels. What was he doing on a country road in France? The pieces don’t add up. Could Aymeric’s death be due to something more than a simple accident? As Manuel arrives in in Aix-en-Provence to claim his inheritance, he is immediately shut out by Aymeric’s less-than-sympathetic family, who expect to continue their role in running the vast estate that includes vineyards, a castle, a personal chapel and a sizable staff. Aymeric’s brother and mother are particularly incensed by Manuel’s claims, and by the mere fact of his existence. The immediate and seething animosity becomes even more heated as Manuel vocalizes his suspicions of foul play. But he finds an ally in the form of recently-retired policeman Richard Saugier (Bruno Solo, Perfect Murders, Blood on the Docks), who helps him investigate Aymeric’s death and the secrets of his powerful family - secrets that some would prefer remain buried forever.
Now, English is not my first language. French was my first language and I spoke it exclusively until I was five years old - Dad had returned home from his final tour in Viet Nam and I struggled to speak English at a normal speed for years which required me to have voice lessons. My Grandfather was French and being somewhat still fluent in French, alors j'ai éteint les sous-titres anglais.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/All-This-Will-...
"All This I Will Give to You" is an intense limited French mystery mini-series based on the award-winning, international bestselling novel by Dolores Redondo. After a fatal car crash on a rural road claims the life of Aymeric his handsome family estate is left to his equally handsome and grief-stricken husband, the renowned Parisian author Manuel Manuel is shocked not only by his husband’s death, but also by the fact that he was the son of a wealthy landowner – something Aymeric kept secret from him. Aymeric was supposed to have been on a business trip to Brussels. What was he doing on a country road in France? The pieces don’t add up. Could Aymeric’s death be due to something more than a simple accident? As Manuel arrives in in Aix-en-Provence to claim his inheritance, he is immediately shut out by Aymeric’s less-than-sympathetic family, who expect to continue their role in running the vast estate that includes vineyards, a castle, a personal chapel and a sizable staff. Aymeric’s brother and mother are particularly incensed by Manuel’s claims, and by the mere fact of his existence. The immediate and seething animosity becomes even more heated as Manuel vocalizes his suspicions of foul play. But he finds an ally in the form of recently-retired policeman Richard Saugier (Bruno Solo, Perfect Murders, Blood on the Docks), who helps him investigate Aymeric’s death and the secrets of his powerful family - secrets that some would prefer remain buried forever.
Now, English is not my first language. French was my first language and I spoke it exclusively until I was five years old - Dad had returned home from his final tour in Viet Nam and I struggled to speak English at a normal speed for years which required me to have voice lessons. My Grandfather was French and being somewhat still fluent in French, alors j'ai éteint les sous-titres anglais.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://www.amazon.com/All-This-Will-...
IF
Just finished watching "IF" released by Paramount.
Now upon its release back in May 2024, IF, which is short for Imaginary Friend, it opened to mixed reviews and is considered to be a box office failure, grossing over $190.3 million against a budget of $110 million. Its always amusing to see what Hollywood considers a success and failure.
IF may become a cult classic n the future. It does have an element of the "Wizard of Oz" to it and explores the power of belief, love, and hope lost and regained.
Bea, who just turned 12, moves into her grandmother Margaret's apartment in New York while her father waits for heart surgery in the same hospital where her mother died of cancer years earlier. One night, Bea sees an unfamiliar creature, following it back to her grandmother's building.
The next day, Bea sees it again, accompanied by a man. She follows them to a nearby house where the man, Cal, retrieves a large furry purple creature named Blue. Bea also meets the other creature, a butterfly-like being named Blossom, and faints.
Bea awakens in Cal's apartment where she learns that he has been working with imaginary friends (or IFs) to place them with new children as their original children have grown up and forgotten them, and they will soon disappear. Initially reluctant, she eventually decides to help Cal.
The next day, Cal takes Bea to Memory Lane Retirement Home, a retirement community for IFs housed underneath a swing ride in Coney Island. An elderly teddy bear and the head of the facility named Lewis inspires her to use her imagination to redesign the facility, much to the chagrin of Cal. Bea tries to match one of the IFs with Benjamin, a young patient at the hospital, but he is unable to see any of them. Lewis suggests to Bea that maybe IFs do not need new kids, but rather to reunite with their old ones.
Talking with her grandmother, Bea sees a photo of her as a young dancer and recognizes Blossom in the background. Realizing she was her grandmother's IF, she decides to test Lewis' idea. Playing one of her grandmother's records inspires Margaret to dance and she remembers Blossom, instilling Bea with hope.
Following a tip, Bea, Cal, and Blue find Blue's original kid Jeremy, now a grown man trying to launch a business. With Bea's help Jeremy remembers Blue, who gives him the confidence he needs for a business presentation.
That evening, Bea arrives at Margaret's who frantically informs her granddaughter that there has been a complication with her father's treatment. Comforted by Cal, Bea says she does not want to say goodbye to her dad, so he suggests she tell him a story instead.
At the hospital, Bea tells her father a story about how she was pushing herself to act like a grown-up when she is just a child who still needs her father. He wakes up and they hug. When Bea goes outside his hospital room, she sees that all of the IFs, who had accompanied her to the hospital, are gone.
Returning to her grandmother's building, Bea goes to thank Cal only to discover that the door to his apartment opens into an old storage room as revealed by the landlady. After her dad is released from the hospital, he and Bea pack up to go home. During this, Bea realizes from an old picture she painted that Cal is actually her own IF, whom she had forgotten after her mother's death. Bea rushes to Cal's room and thanks him for helping, telling him she will always need him. This allows her to see Cal and the IFs again and they reunite.
Some time later, Cal continues reuniting the IFs with their original kids, now grown up. Benjamin meets his IF, a cartoonish bespectacled dragon with a cast and crutch.
IF is a movie with heart and the revelation of who Cal is a stunning revelation.
Strongly Recommended.
Five Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Blu-Ray-Digita...
Now upon its release back in May 2024, IF, which is short for Imaginary Friend, it opened to mixed reviews and is considered to be a box office failure, grossing over $190.3 million against a budget of $110 million. Its always amusing to see what Hollywood considers a success and failure.
IF may become a cult classic n the future. It does have an element of the "Wizard of Oz" to it and explores the power of belief, love, and hope lost and regained.
Bea, who just turned 12, moves into her grandmother Margaret's apartment in New York while her father waits for heart surgery in the same hospital where her mother died of cancer years earlier. One night, Bea sees an unfamiliar creature, following it back to her grandmother's building.
The next day, Bea sees it again, accompanied by a man. She follows them to a nearby house where the man, Cal, retrieves a large furry purple creature named Blue. Bea also meets the other creature, a butterfly-like being named Blossom, and faints.
Bea awakens in Cal's apartment where she learns that he has been working with imaginary friends (or IFs) to place them with new children as their original children have grown up and forgotten them, and they will soon disappear. Initially reluctant, she eventually decides to help Cal.
The next day, Cal takes Bea to Memory Lane Retirement Home, a retirement community for IFs housed underneath a swing ride in Coney Island. An elderly teddy bear and the head of the facility named Lewis inspires her to use her imagination to redesign the facility, much to the chagrin of Cal. Bea tries to match one of the IFs with Benjamin, a young patient at the hospital, but he is unable to see any of them. Lewis suggests to Bea that maybe IFs do not need new kids, but rather to reunite with their old ones.
Talking with her grandmother, Bea sees a photo of her as a young dancer and recognizes Blossom in the background. Realizing she was her grandmother's IF, she decides to test Lewis' idea. Playing one of her grandmother's records inspires Margaret to dance and she remembers Blossom, instilling Bea with hope.
Following a tip, Bea, Cal, and Blue find Blue's original kid Jeremy, now a grown man trying to launch a business. With Bea's help Jeremy remembers Blue, who gives him the confidence he needs for a business presentation.
That evening, Bea arrives at Margaret's who frantically informs her granddaughter that there has been a complication with her father's treatment. Comforted by Cal, Bea says she does not want to say goodbye to her dad, so he suggests she tell him a story instead.
At the hospital, Bea tells her father a story about how she was pushing herself to act like a grown-up when she is just a child who still needs her father. He wakes up and they hug. When Bea goes outside his hospital room, she sees that all of the IFs, who had accompanied her to the hospital, are gone.
Returning to her grandmother's building, Bea goes to thank Cal only to discover that the door to his apartment opens into an old storage room as revealed by the landlady. After her dad is released from the hospital, he and Bea pack up to go home. During this, Bea realizes from an old picture she painted that Cal is actually her own IF, whom she had forgotten after her mother's death. Bea rushes to Cal's room and thanks him for helping, telling him she will always need him. This allows her to see Cal and the IFs again and they reunite.
Some time later, Cal continues reuniting the IFs with their original kids, now grown up. Benjamin meets his IF, a cartoonish bespectacled dragon with a cast and crutch.
IF is a movie with heart and the revelation of who Cal is a stunning revelation.
Strongly Recommended.
Five Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Blu-Ray-Digita...
Clue - The Movie
Just finished watching "Clue - The Movie" released by Paramount.
Now unfortunately I am old enough to remember when "Clue - The Movie" was a highly anticipated release that was going to hit the movie theaters on Christmas Day back in 1985.
It bombed badly with bad reviews all around - even Siskel and Ebert gave it two thumbs down. So Mom, Dad, Selma, and I waited until it became an "event" movie that debuted on HBO and we watched it then. While an okay movie, it's not a great comedy mystery movie that was based on the classic board game - which at one time had acclaimed mystery novelist P.D. James penning the script.
For trivia buffs, "Clue - The Movie" was the first big time Hollywood Movie based on a game; and that was one of the marketing highlights of the movie - along with the fact that three different endings were filmed and there were three different versions of the movie released in theaters - which didn't help bring in the box office bucks. "Clue -The Movie" cost $15 million to make and only took in a world wide box office of $14.6 million.
"Clue - The Movie" takes place in 1954, where six strangers are invited to a secluded New England mansion. Greeted by the butler Wadsworth and the maid Yvette, each guest receives a pseudonym to maintain confidentiality: "Colonel Mustard", "Mrs. White", "Mrs. Peacock", "Mr. Green", "Professor Plum", and "Miss Scarlet". During dinner, they discover they all hold government influence before being joined by Mr. Boddy, who has been blackmailing everyone for some time. Wadsworth has called the police to arrest Boddy, but Boddy threatens to expose everyone's secrets if they turn him in. He then presents the six guests with weapons—a candlestick, rope, lead pipe, wrench, revolver, and dagger—and suggests someone kill Wadsworth to protect their secrets before turning out the lights. After a gunshot rings out, Boddy is found on the floor, seemingly dead.
As the guests investigate Boddy's death, Wadsworth explains how he became indentured to Boddy and summoned the guests, hoping to force a confession from Boddy and turn him over to the police. As the group suspect the cook, only to find she was fatally stabbed with the dagger, someone discovers Boddy is alive before killing him with the candlestick. Wadsworth locks the weapons in a cupboard, but before he can throw away the key, a stranded motorist arrives and Wadsworth locks him in the lounge before throwing a key out the front door. The group draw lots to pair up before searching the manor. However, someone burns the blackmail evidence, unlocks the cupboard, and kills the motorist with the wrench. Discovering a secret passage, Mustard and Scarlet find themselves locked in the lounge with the motorist's corpse. When they scream for help, Yvette shoots the door open with the revolver. The group deduce that Wadsworth threw out the wrong key and the murderer pickpocketed the cupboard key from him.
A cop investigating the motorist's abandoned car arrives to use the phone. The mansion receives a call from FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover, which Wadsworth takes alone. After successfully distracting the cop and concealing the bodies, the group resumes their search until someone turns off the electricity. In the darkness, Yvette, the cop, and an arriving singing telegram girl are murdered with the rope, pipe, and revolver, respectively. Wadsworth restores the power and gathers the group, having deduced what happened. Recreating the night's events and amidst a brief interruption from an evangelist, he explains how the other five victims were Boddy's informants who are each connected to one of the guests, which dovetails into one of three possible outcomes.
Recommended if you've got nothing better to watch.
Two-and-a-half Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Clue-Movie-Eil...
Now unfortunately I am old enough to remember when "Clue - The Movie" was a highly anticipated release that was going to hit the movie theaters on Christmas Day back in 1985.
It bombed badly with bad reviews all around - even Siskel and Ebert gave it two thumbs down. So Mom, Dad, Selma, and I waited until it became an "event" movie that debuted on HBO and we watched it then. While an okay movie, it's not a great comedy mystery movie that was based on the classic board game - which at one time had acclaimed mystery novelist P.D. James penning the script.
For trivia buffs, "Clue - The Movie" was the first big time Hollywood Movie based on a game; and that was one of the marketing highlights of the movie - along with the fact that three different endings were filmed and there were three different versions of the movie released in theaters - which didn't help bring in the box office bucks. "Clue -The Movie" cost $15 million to make and only took in a world wide box office of $14.6 million.
"Clue - The Movie" takes place in 1954, where six strangers are invited to a secluded New England mansion. Greeted by the butler Wadsworth and the maid Yvette, each guest receives a pseudonym to maintain confidentiality: "Colonel Mustard", "Mrs. White", "Mrs. Peacock", "Mr. Green", "Professor Plum", and "Miss Scarlet". During dinner, they discover they all hold government influence before being joined by Mr. Boddy, who has been blackmailing everyone for some time. Wadsworth has called the police to arrest Boddy, but Boddy threatens to expose everyone's secrets if they turn him in. He then presents the six guests with weapons—a candlestick, rope, lead pipe, wrench, revolver, and dagger—and suggests someone kill Wadsworth to protect their secrets before turning out the lights. After a gunshot rings out, Boddy is found on the floor, seemingly dead.
As the guests investigate Boddy's death, Wadsworth explains how he became indentured to Boddy and summoned the guests, hoping to force a confession from Boddy and turn him over to the police. As the group suspect the cook, only to find she was fatally stabbed with the dagger, someone discovers Boddy is alive before killing him with the candlestick. Wadsworth locks the weapons in a cupboard, but before he can throw away the key, a stranded motorist arrives and Wadsworth locks him in the lounge before throwing a key out the front door. The group draw lots to pair up before searching the manor. However, someone burns the blackmail evidence, unlocks the cupboard, and kills the motorist with the wrench. Discovering a secret passage, Mustard and Scarlet find themselves locked in the lounge with the motorist's corpse. When they scream for help, Yvette shoots the door open with the revolver. The group deduce that Wadsworth threw out the wrong key and the murderer pickpocketed the cupboard key from him.
A cop investigating the motorist's abandoned car arrives to use the phone. The mansion receives a call from FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover, which Wadsworth takes alone. After successfully distracting the cop and concealing the bodies, the group resumes their search until someone turns off the electricity. In the darkness, Yvette, the cop, and an arriving singing telegram girl are murdered with the rope, pipe, and revolver, respectively. Wadsworth restores the power and gathers the group, having deduced what happened. Recreating the night's events and amidst a brief interruption from an evangelist, he explains how the other five victims were Boddy's informants who are each connected to one of the guests, which dovetails into one of three possible outcomes.
Recommended if you've got nothing better to watch.
Two-and-a-half Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Clue-Movie-Eil...
Journey
Just finished listening to "Journey" by Tony O'Connor, released by Studio Horizon.
A little bit of biographical background about Tony O'Connor is in order since it has been about 14 years since his untimely passing.
Tony Michael O'Connor (15 March 1961 – 23 May 2010) was an Australian composer, producer and performer of instrumental, new-age music. His music has sold over three and a half million copies worldwide, releasing his debut album in 1987 and his last in 2007.
O'Connor also composed music scores for film and television and is one of Australia's biggest selling instrumental musicians. His music sometimes utilizes sounds from nature, and is very much focused on relaxation and what he called music therapy. His album, Mariner (1990), reached No. 40 on the ARIA Albums Chart in March 1993. Tony O'Connor died on 23 May 2010, due to a glioblastoma multiforme. He is survived by his life partner, Jacqui O'Connor and their child, Samantha Jane.
I discovered Tony O'Connor's music when I was reading one of Medwyn Goodall's newsletters and there was several paragraphs about O'Connor and his music, along with the link to his website. So after listening to his work online, I began purchasing all of the CDs that O'Connor released through Studio Horizon, yet "Journey," his first album remained elusive because it was never released on CD and the cassette release had long sold out.
There are several other of O'Conor's albums from early in his career that have yet to be re-released on CD and I hope more will follow the re-release of "Journey."
O'Connor was an independent artist who recorded all of his music in his own recording studio. As well as the guitar and the piano, O'Connor also played the flute, both metal and wood based flutes, as well as an Electric Wind Instrument which allowed for a wide variety of instrument sounds to be produced on one instrument. He also played percussion, the bass guitar and keyboards. O'Connor usually worked as a solo artist, playing all instruments in his recordings.
It was great to discover O'Connor's lost album for the very first time. My favorite tracks are: "Forest Call," "Mirror Moon," "The Ocean," "Wandering," and "Long Ago."
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://tonyoconnor.mywaterfrontstore...
A little bit of biographical background about Tony O'Connor is in order since it has been about 14 years since his untimely passing.
Tony Michael O'Connor (15 March 1961 – 23 May 2010) was an Australian composer, producer and performer of instrumental, new-age music. His music has sold over three and a half million copies worldwide, releasing his debut album in 1987 and his last in 2007.
O'Connor also composed music scores for film and television and is one of Australia's biggest selling instrumental musicians. His music sometimes utilizes sounds from nature, and is very much focused on relaxation and what he called music therapy. His album, Mariner (1990), reached No. 40 on the ARIA Albums Chart in March 1993. Tony O'Connor died on 23 May 2010, due to a glioblastoma multiforme. He is survived by his life partner, Jacqui O'Connor and their child, Samantha Jane.
I discovered Tony O'Connor's music when I was reading one of Medwyn Goodall's newsletters and there was several paragraphs about O'Connor and his music, along with the link to his website. So after listening to his work online, I began purchasing all of the CDs that O'Connor released through Studio Horizon, yet "Journey," his first album remained elusive because it was never released on CD and the cassette release had long sold out.
There are several other of O'Conor's albums from early in his career that have yet to be re-released on CD and I hope more will follow the re-release of "Journey."
O'Connor was an independent artist who recorded all of his music in his own recording studio. As well as the guitar and the piano, O'Connor also played the flute, both metal and wood based flutes, as well as an Electric Wind Instrument which allowed for a wide variety of instrument sounds to be produced on one instrument. He also played percussion, the bass guitar and keyboards. O'Connor usually worked as a solo artist, playing all instruments in his recordings.
It was great to discover O'Connor's lost album for the very first time. My favorite tracks are: "Forest Call," "Mirror Moon," "The Ocean," "Wandering," and "Long Ago."
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://tonyoconnor.mywaterfrontstore...
The Lone Ranger - Man At Large
Just finished listening "The Lone Ranger - Man At Large" released by Radio Spirits.
Radio Spirits had the license to release episodes from "The Lone Ranger" radio show from radio's Golden Age for I believe for nearly 40 years or more. Radio Spirits used to release old time radio programs on cassette tapes. So it was a bit of a surprise when I discovered quite by accident that "The Lone Ranger - Man At Large" was the last collection of "The Lone Ranger" radio shows they released and all previously released collections of "The Lone Ranger" have been purged from their website and you can only find previously listened to collections of "The Lone Ranger" for sale on eBay for various prices.
On a rather curious side note, Disney no longer seems to own the rights to "The Lone Ranger." I may be wrong on this, but ONESMEDIA now offer a collection of "The Lone Ranger" radio shows.
Mom, Dad, and I always listened to "The Lone Ranger" collections when Radio Spirits released them and I did play this collection when I visited Mom and Dad at the Jacksonville National Cemetery.
If memory serves me correctly, Brace Beemer, who played The Lone Ranger and John Todd, who played Tonto, hold the record for playing the same character on a regular basis on radio. I think they surpassed Kelsey Grammer's record for playing Frazier on television.
My favorite episodes in this collection are: "Girl From St. Louis," "The White Buffalo," "A Cake For Skinner," "Matilda's Kittens," "Pop Travis' Letter," "The Bunkhouse Trap," "The Whimsical Bandit," and "Wild West Steamboats."
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://radiospirits.com/detailsv2.as...
Radio Spirits had the license to release episodes from "The Lone Ranger" radio show from radio's Golden Age for I believe for nearly 40 years or more. Radio Spirits used to release old time radio programs on cassette tapes. So it was a bit of a surprise when I discovered quite by accident that "The Lone Ranger - Man At Large" was the last collection of "The Lone Ranger" radio shows they released and all previously released collections of "The Lone Ranger" have been purged from their website and you can only find previously listened to collections of "The Lone Ranger" for sale on eBay for various prices.
On a rather curious side note, Disney no longer seems to own the rights to "The Lone Ranger." I may be wrong on this, but ONESMEDIA now offer a collection of "The Lone Ranger" radio shows.
Mom, Dad, and I always listened to "The Lone Ranger" collections when Radio Spirits released them and I did play this collection when I visited Mom and Dad at the Jacksonville National Cemetery.
If memory serves me correctly, Brace Beemer, who played The Lone Ranger and John Todd, who played Tonto, hold the record for playing the same character on a regular basis on radio. I think they surpassed Kelsey Grammer's record for playing Frazier on television.
My favorite episodes in this collection are: "Girl From St. Louis," "The White Buffalo," "A Cake For Skinner," "Matilda's Kittens," "Pop Travis' Letter," "The Bunkhouse Trap," "The Whimsical Bandit," and "Wild West Steamboats."
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!
TEN STARS!
https://radiospirits.com/detailsv2.as...
December 27, 2024
Time Bandits - The Series
Just stopped watching "Time Bandits - The Series" released by Apple TV +.
Blame it on the stupidity and greed of Peter Dinklage who despite being an actor, decided to speak out against the hiring of dwarfs as actors in other Hollywood productions such as the live action Snow White movie because that would be somehow offensive to Progressive Socialistic Liberals who group people into offensive stereotypes, because the only dwarf actor Hollywood can hire is Dinklage.
Thus, when you decide to adapt a popular hit and cult movie like "Time Bandits," you have to do away with the original concept that the bandits are dwarfs and make them into a Progressive Culturally Diverse group of tall people and include women and other minorities in the mix, and make Kevin, a 10-year old boy gay because he has a Rainbow Pride Flag in his room.
I stopped watching 20 minutes into the first episode.
Here's how I think the creative team at Apple TV + developed this television adaption: They read the synopsis from Wikipedia and went from their using Artificial Intelligence to write the scripts.
If you're a fan of the original "Time Bandits" movie, do yourself a favor and skip this trash fire of a television show and just rewatch the original movie on Blu-ray.
CAN NOT RECOMMEND!
ZERO STARS!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/405376238974...
Blame it on the stupidity and greed of Peter Dinklage who despite being an actor, decided to speak out against the hiring of dwarfs as actors in other Hollywood productions such as the live action Snow White movie because that would be somehow offensive to Progressive Socialistic Liberals who group people into offensive stereotypes, because the only dwarf actor Hollywood can hire is Dinklage.
Thus, when you decide to adapt a popular hit and cult movie like "Time Bandits," you have to do away with the original concept that the bandits are dwarfs and make them into a Progressive Culturally Diverse group of tall people and include women and other minorities in the mix, and make Kevin, a 10-year old boy gay because he has a Rainbow Pride Flag in his room.
I stopped watching 20 minutes into the first episode.
Here's how I think the creative team at Apple TV + developed this television adaption: They read the synopsis from Wikipedia and went from their using Artificial Intelligence to write the scripts.
If you're a fan of the original "Time Bandits" movie, do yourself a favor and skip this trash fire of a television show and just rewatch the original movie on Blu-ray.
CAN NOT RECOMMEND!
ZERO STARS!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/405376238974...
