E.R. Torre's Blog, page 87
January 19, 2018
Politics… politics… and more
Beware…!
Hard to avoid the topic today as the Government is just hours away from a shutdown. There have been shutdowns before, all of which hurt Republicans who, for the most part, initiated them against Democratic Presidents.
Interestingly, this time around we have a Republican House, Senate, and Presidency and yet here we go again. The last time such a thing happened with a party in control of all parts of the Government? Jimmy Carter back in the 1970’s.
He wound up being a one term president.
Unlike other government shutdowns, the scariest thing about this one is that President (Gods how hard it is to address this… individual… with that title!) Trump either doesn’t care or doesn’t think a shutdown is a big thing. Worse still, he is so fickle regarding what he wants to get done -changing his opinion on what he wants done sometimes within seconds- that many in Congress and the Senate have little idea what to do to solve the problem at hand.
What’s most amusing is the politics of the whole thing, and the fact that Trump and the Republicans are trying to blame their regular boogey-man, the Democrats, for any potential shutdown.
Yeah, blame the party that is in the minority on everything and can’t get anything they want done for your own failures.
Makes about as much sense as everything else we’ve seen going on in Washington this year.
****
The other still fairly big news out there involves sexual harassment. It’s truly harrowing to read about Larry Nassar, for example, the one time USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University doctor who, its been revealed, abused for years the girls in the Gymnastics programs he was involved in and, incredibly, had the huevos to complain that facing the people he abused in court is hard for him to do and, I suppose, it was somehow becoming abuse to him.
The judge in the case shot that one down nicely, calling him “delusional” for thinking that way considering the lives he ruined.
But what intrigues me is the fact that all this seems to be catching up with actor/director Woody Allen.
I will admit here and now that there are some works/movies he’s done that I’ve loved. Some of his early comedies were hilarious and some of the more “serious” films he did after that first wave of comedies are quite good.
But when Mr. Allen had his breakup with Mia Farrow and the stories involved in that (and his subsequent marriage), things certainly turned… icky.
Later still he was accused of sexual abuse by Dylan Farrow, Mia’s daughter, and while for years it appeared people were unsure whether to believe her or Woody Allen, the tide appears to have finally turned.
Yesterday, Dylan Farrow gave a tearful and, quite frankly, chilling interview regarding her one time step father…
Today, word today came that Colin Firth has announced he will no longer work with Woody Allen. He follows in the footsteps of several other actors who once worked with Mr. Allen and have announced they will no longer do so.
Good.
Being a clever, even brilliant artist doesn’t make you immune to being a creep (or worse) and if the accusations are to be believed, and I do, then Mr. Allen’s day of reckoning appears to have finally come.
January 18, 2018
Sketchin’ 46
Caroline Munro… an incredibly beautiful actress best known today for playing Naomi, bad guy Karl Stromberg’s lovely (and deadly) helicopter pilot in what many consider Roger Moore’s best James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me.
According to Ms. Munro, at the time she had to chose whether to take that role or Ursa in the Superman films and chose Bond. While I’m glad she played Naomi, I’d be lying if I said it wouldn’t have been intriguing to see her play Ursa! Ms. Munro would appeared in many other films, including At The Earth’s Core and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad.
David Bowie Let’s Dance Demo…
In the last years before the passing of David Bowie, I noticed he had an affinity to “celebrate” his birthdays by giving his fans something special.
His birthday is January 8, 1947 and he would pass away two days after his 69th birthday on January 10, 2016. His last two albums, The Next Day and Blackstar, were announced on his 66th birthday (2014) and released on his 69th birthday, respectively.
After his passing, the No Plan EP album, featuring his final recordings was released on January 8th, 2017.
When January 8th neared this year, I figured something would be released to celebrate what would have been his 71st birthday. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I missed the release, which turned out to be a demo version of one of his biggest hits, the song Let’s Dance.
If you’re like me and you missed it, here it is!
Clearly a “rough”, pre-Niles Rogers (the producer of the album) version, which he considerably funked up. And yet, everything is pretty much there, lyrically and in terms of how the song “flows”.
For comparison, here’s the version that made it to the album…
January 17, 2018
Sketchin’ 45
Question: Who was the first superhero to make the transition from comic books to the screen? It was Captain Marvel, the one now called -stupidly- Shazam.
The 12 part serial The Adventures of Captain Marvel was released in 1941 and featured the imposing in the role of the good Captain, a man who made Zach Snyder’s Batman look like Ghandi (I kid, I kid, but you should check out some of the stuff he does to the bad guys!). Anyway, Mr. Tyler as Captain Marvel!
Curious about Mr. Tyler, I looked his bio up on IMDB and was saddened to find that he passed away in 1954, only 13 years after the release of Captain Marvel, and at the too young age of 50 due to rheumatoid arthritis. Another bit of trivia: Mr. Tyler would also be the first person to portray The Phantom in the 1943 serial, as well.
Resurrected Roman Temple…
Fascinating story written by Katy Scott and found on CNN.com concerning…
Temple To Ancient Roman Cult Resurrected Beneath London
The temple, originally re-discovered soon after the end of WWII, was dedicated to the cult of Mithras, a religious cult in ancient Roman times of which little is known.
I don’t want to give everything in the story away, but it is a fascinating one and proves, as if there was ever any doubt, that researchers, archeologists, and historians have a long way to go to understand the various religions and organizations lost to time.
Fascinating, fascinating stuff!
January 16, 2018
Dolores O’Riordan, R.I.P.
Yesteday, while making the long drive home (we were out over the weekend), came the news that singer Dolores O’Riordan passed away at the very, very young age of 46.
Those unfamiliar with Ms. O’Riordan should acquaint themselves with her songs while fronting the band The Cranberries, a band which had its greatest influence in the 1990’s. Some of their great hits:
Ms. O’Riordan’s voice/delivery were truly unique and these four songs presented above, arguably the band’s most popular, were spectacular works and it saddens me tremendously that she’s gone.
At this time, there is no information regarding the cause of her death. Given her very young age and some stories I’ve found online -nothing terribly dark, mind you- one nonetheless can’t help but wonder if Ms. O’Riordan’s fallen victim to something that preys upon too many musical artists.
Regardless, the bottom line is that one of the most intriguing voices of that generation is stilled, and that’s a real shame.
January 11, 2018
Corrosive Knights, a 1/11/18 update
We’re into the new year and I fully expect to have the latest book in the Corrosive Knights series, book #7, be released…
[image error]As you can see from the above, Book #7 is the conclusion to the series. By that I mean the main story I’ve been working on for 6 books comes to its end with Book #7.
This book looks like it will be my longest, wordcount-wise, to date and I’m currently 2/3rds of the way through the latest draft. This draft, I’m hoping, will be the one where I get all the main details down and from that point on future drafts will hopefully involve cleaning up/streamlining the story for maximum effect.
As you can also see from the graphic above, following this book there will be a Book #8, which I call an “Epilogue”. This book will come out very soon after Book #7’s release.
Very soon after.
Why?
Those who have been around here for a while know why. It’s because I already have Book #8 written out, at least the first full draft, and what’s left to do is review it, clean up/streamline it, and it’ll be ready. I don’t anticipate that taking much more than a few months.
Will both books be released in 2018?
I can’t promise that as it depends entirely on the work I have to do with Book #7. The quicker I get that book out, the quicker I get to #8.
We’ll see…
January 10, 2018
The story that just keeps giving…
There’s so much in the news today -so much of it political!- but there was one story that broke yesterday that just has you shaking your head.
Matthew Dessem over at Slate.com writes about how…
You remember the film All The Money In The World, right? The Ridley Scott directed film that featured Kevin Spacey but, because of the controversy surrounding Mr. Spacey’s sexual harassment allegations, was clipped out of the film and Christopher Plumber was brought in at the very last minute to replace and re-film his scenes?
Well, co-stars Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Williams were also brought in to re-film scenes that once featured Spacey.
Here’s the thing: Ridley Scott stated that while the film crew and Mr. Plummer were paid, he, Wahlberg, and Michelle Williams came back for free… allegedly to keep the film’s budget reasonable.
Only as it now turns out, Mr. Wahlberg was paid quite handsomely for what amounted to 9 days of re-shoots… while his female co-star -and there’s no pleasant way to say this- got royally screwed.
Hell, it would have been better they gave her nothing and left her thinking she was doing this for “art” rather than reveal at this point her co-star received such a princely sum while she got next to nothing.
Truly a horrendous story and, I should hope, Mr. Wahlberg does something on his own to correct the situation.
Wouldn’t it be incredibly gracious of Mr. Wahlberg if he were to issue a statement that he didn’t realize his co-star was receiving so little compared to him for the re-shoots and went ahead and offered her half his re-shoot salary?
Having said that, what are the odds something like this actually happening?
One can dream, I suppose!
January 9, 2018
On critics…
I’ve long, very long, been fascinated with critical opinion. My first strong experience with critical reaction must have happened in the early 80’s with the Siskel and Ebert movie review shows (they went through various names but originally were called Sneak Previews and then At The Movies).
Being a HUGE movie fan (still am!) and in those pre-internet days, it was a thrill to see someone talk about a film that wasn’t in theaters yet and offer not only clips from said film but also an opinion on whether it was worth seeing or not.
I didn’t have a favorite between Mr. Siskel and Ebert, often finding myself agreeing with either of them regarding any particular film. It was all too clear from watching the show they loved movies yet they were not shy to tear a feature down if they felt it wasn’t worthy of being seen. They didn’t always agree, and sometimes their disagreements were incredibly entertaining on their own, regardless of what I would think of said film.
One of my favorite disagreements involved an episode from 1987 wherein Mr. Siskel and Ebert reviewed both Benji: The Hunted and Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket. To Mr. Siskel’s shock, Roger Ebert would give a “thumbs up” to Benji: The Hunted and a “thumbs down” to Full Metal Jacket.
Mr. Siskel couldn’t understand how Ebert could give such a review and their snipping about that issue extended through the episode and went into their video recommendations…
Anyway, the reason I point all this out is because in this day and age and with the internet, everyone can present their opinion on any particular subject, quite literally, to the world.
Today there are hundreds of “professional” movies (and book, etc.) reviewers out there. In the movie business, rottentomatoes.com allows the public at large to see a snapshot of what the reviewers out there, along with audiences, think of a film on average.
But it does lead to certain questions, questions that Ben Yagoda at Slate.com checks out…
The Reviewer’s Fallacy: When Critics Aren’t Critical Enough
I have to say, the headline itself strikes a nerve in me.
If you’ve followed this blog for any length of time, I’ve noted that when I was younger (and perhaps taking a cue from the likes of Mr. Siskel and Ebert!), I was a fierce critic of films or TV shows or books. I loved them, mind you, but I was very keen to spot what to me were the flaws in these works and arrogant enough to think that if I could spot them, the people who made said film/TV show/book/song etc. should see them too and should have fixed them before releasing them to the general public.
When you think like that, there are very few works of film that one thought of as masterpieces and, even those I felt that way, I further felt had some kind of flaw but the overall work was so good that the flaws didn’t bother me.
As the years passed and I started to work in comic books, I realized something that the younger me didn’t: There are myriad roads taken before a product is released to the general public and sometimes what is released is the best thing possible given time or budget or any other constraints.
To put it bluntly, I mellowed out. Suddenly, the flaws that were so glaring in works seemed far more trivial.
Yesterday, I reviewed the film Atomic Blonde. I liked the film well enough, it held my interest through its run time, and featured several explosive and inventive action sequences.
It also featured a plot that was mess, an attempt to be clever and show various characters being duplicitous but ultimately wound up being either too confusing or just plain silly (a mild example SPOILER: Why does Charlize Theron’s character still bother with James McAvoy’s character when she knows he called the police on her when she went to a certain subject’s apartment to investigate?).
In the past, I probably would have been absolutely vicious with such a film and yet, as I said in my review, I ultimately liked it well enough despite its problems to offer a recommendation.
While I’m not a “professional” film critic, Mr. Yagoda ponders why certain critics offer high praise for movies which ultimately land with a thud to audiences. He offers some examples of films that met with plenty of praise but ultimately didn’t thrill audiences.
Though he doesn’t do so, I suspect a prime film for consideration on the schism between critical “pro” and audience would be Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
While The Last Jedi is clearly a box office smash, the disconnect between critics and audiences is sharply pronounced, with critics in general loving the film while audiences were sharply divided.
Still, that’s the nature of art, isn’t it? There will be those who love things that others don’t. Perhaps at times we’ll let our own likes and dislikes cloud our reviews but in the end, whether we choose to see something or not, we do so nowadays knowing more about the work than we have before, for better or worse.
January 8, 2018
Atomic Blonde (2017) a (mildly) belated review
Like many films out there, Atomic Blonde appears to have its fans and detractors. Those who like the film enjoyed the action sequences -some of which are quite excellent- while those who don’t like the film all that much point out the fact that the plot is rather bland and, at times, confusing and/or slow.
I can see both sides, though I ultimately fall on the “liking it” side.
Directed by David Leitch, Atomic Blonde basically plays out like a late Cold War version of Mr. Leitch’s previous film, John Wick. Instead of a pseudo sci-fi set up involving assassins and their murky world, we’re placed in Berlin during the Cold War, when the city was separated by a wall and, as we find, we’re at the moment when the wall is about to come down…
…only there’s a problem: There’s this guy with a list that could prove very damaging to all the various spy agencies populating the area. The Brits send Lorraine Broughton (, quite into the role) to go look for this list (I suppose they could call it the McGuffin list). Once in Berlin, things quickly go sideways as the Soviets seem to already have a bead on her.
She meets her contact, David Percival (, quite fun), but doesn’t know just how much she can trust him. She also realizes she’s being followed and dangers lurk around every corner.
Atomic Blonde is told in media res. When we meet Lorraine, she’s already out of Berlin and is debriefing with her boss () and in the company of a CIA man (, quite fun as well) of the events that happened in Berlin.
The events make for a whopper of a story, full of plot twists that border -and often pass- into the realm of the ridiculous.
And yet… I was entertained.
There are plenty of things the film could and probably should have done better yet I liked what I saw and felt Ms. Theron once again proved herself more than capable of doing the action hero thing.
So, if you liked John Wick (and, bear in mind, I did not like John Wick 2), then Atomic Blonde might just be up your alley.
Just sit back and enjoy the action and the wonderful 80’s soundtrack and don’t think too hard about all those plot twists.
It’s not worth the headache.
