August 30

Yolanda once again correctly identified "Man who catch fly with chopstick accomplish anything." Ever catch one?" "Not yet." coming from The Karate Kid 1984 starring Ralph Macchio and Noriyuki Morita.

This comes from a very old movie, but a wonderful one: "Cosmo, call me a cab." "OK, you're a cab."

In Theaters:

Julie and Julia - After hearing such good things about this film, we saw it this weekend. It is a fun movie. As usual Meryl Streep does an amazing job transforming herself into Julia Child. I particularly enjoyed the touching relationship Child had with her husband Paul played so well by StanleyTucci. The parallel story of Julie Powell, the blogger/writer, who, as everyone knows by now, prepares all of the recipes from Julia's cookbook over the course of a year and blogs each day about it is your typical romantic comedy, but I must admit I think Amy Adams is adorable. Is it an Academy Award worthy film, no, but a nice way to enjoy a few hours.


Changeling - I put off putting this film on my list since I was wary of the subject matter, but in the end finally did see it. It is the heartbreaking true story of Christine Collins whose son disappears and the corruptions of the LA police force. AngelinaJolie was nominated for an academy award for best actress and she does an outstanding job. In some scenes she reminded me of her earlier role in Girl Interrupted. Jeffrey Donovan plays the corrupt police captain who currently is the star on the cable TV show "Burn Notice." I hadn't remembered that Clint Eastwood was the director. It is very long over two hours and does drag in some spots. It could have been edited to less than two hours. I don't know if it is me and a short attention span or if it really is too long, you decide.


Melanie Stanley writes:

For those of you with young kids, or in my case, grandkids, go see the new Disney movie, Ponyo. We saw it yesterday, and my five 1/2 year old grandson exclaimed, "That was the best movie I ever saw!"

A note about my pet peeve:

I now know why the movies are losing money and so many people are either renting movies from Netflix or Blockbusters. As I mentioned above, we went to the theater to see Julie and Julia. The movie schedule indicated the movie was to start at 4:00 p.m. I am not naive to think it will start at 4 and to be honest I do enjoy watching the trailers for upcoming movies. What I do not like to do is sit through 20 minutes of commercials for products I don't want to buy. IDVR TV programs so I don't have to watch commercials on commercial television, but at the theater I had to pay to watch 20 minutes of them. At this particular screening the trailers started at 4:20 and the movie not until 4:30. It was interesting to note that last week when we went to the cheap local theater with older movies, there were no commercials, just a few trailers. I will be thinking twice before going to a first run movie again in a chain theater. This is yet another reason to support independent movie houses like Cinema Arts in Fairfax City.

Thanks for letting me vent!

Roberta

August 26

Yolanda once again correctly identified "How odd that it should end this way for us, after so many stimulating encounters. I almost regret it. Where shall I find a new adversary so close to my own level? Try the local sewer." coming from Raiders of the Lost Ark starring Harrison Ford and Karen Allen. Good going Yolanda!

The dialect of this quote might be a clue to its identity. "Man who catch fly with chopstick accomplish anything." Ever catch one?" "Not yet."

In local theaters, but soon to be released on DVD:

Star Trek - Sy had wanted to see this film when it first came out, but when we finally had time to see it, it seemed to disappear. Fortunately there is a theater nearby that gets movies right before they are released for DVD distribution and with a price of $4 and $3 for students and seniors it is quite a bargain. To our delight Star Trek was playing there. Sy has been a Star Trek fan for years and I have watched along side of him. This film explains how Kirk and his crew including Spock, Bones, Scotty, Sulu, Uhora and Checkov got together. That part of the film was fun and entertaining. If you can take a vacation from reality and believe in time travel, you will enjoy the story. It was also nice to see Leonard Nimoy recreate his role as Spock. The young Captain Kirk reminded me of a young Brad Pitt. All the major actors are enagaging, but none that I knew. For a fun film, put this on your Netflix list.

On Netflix and instantly on your computer:

Frozen River - This movie stars Melissa Leo who was nominated for best actress. She is unknown to me and although did an admirable job with the role, was a bit of a surprise to be nominated.It is an indie movie that tells the story of a mother on hard times living on the outskirts of a Mohawk reservation on the Canadian border. In an unusual way, she becomes partners with a widowed tribe member in a smuggling scheme. I don't want to give too much of the story away, but although a bit slow, quite good. None of the actors are on the A list, but they are certainly good actors just the same. It did get nominated for multiple Independent Spirit Awards including Best Feature. The two young actors playing Leo's sons are good as well. A nice ensemble cast.

From time to time one of our co-film lovers sends along a suggestion for me and I'd like to share it with you. Carol Frank writes:

Just watched the 2007 Oscar Foreign Film Winner "The Lives of Others."

A really fascinating movie that takes place in East Germany (1984), 4 years before the

wall fell. The government is at it's height of 'spying' on it's citizens to keep Western ideas and thoughts out.

You know how I like serious movies- this is definitely one of them with a very

interesting 'human condition' element. Check out the description on Netflix- you may want to watch this one.

Dancing With The Stars Update - Dancing Partners Revealed:

Donny Osmond - Kim Johnson
Tom Delay - Cheryl Burke
Mark Dacascos - Lacey Schwimmer
Kelly Osbourne - Louie Van Amstel
Ashley Hamilton - Edyta Sliwinska
Kathy Ireland - Tony Donvalani
Chuck Lidell - Ann Trebrinskaya
Macy Gray - Jonathan Roberta
Aaron Carter - Karina Smirnoff
Natalie Coughlin - Alec Mazo
Debi Mazar - Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Louie Vito - Chelsie Hightower
Mya - Dmitry Chaplin
Joanna Krupa - Derek Hough
Melissa Joan Hurt - Mark Ballas
Michael Irwin - Anna Demidova

It looks like Sy's favorite girl Cheryl won't be on the show for long with Tom Delay for a partner, but stranger things have happened.

Enjoy,

Roberta

August 19

Carol Frank was the first one to correctly identify: "Listen! Smell something?" coming from Ghostbusters released in 1984 starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Sigourney Weaver. Thanks Shirley for sending this quote along for everyone to guess. If any of you have favorite quotes for me to post, please send them along.

This one is a bit harder: "How odd that it should end this way for us, after so many stimulating encounters. I almost regret it. Where shall I find a new adversary so close to my own level? Try the local sewer."

On Netflix:

Frost/Nixon - It has taken me awhile to see this Oscar nominated film, but it certainly was well worth seeing. Frank Langella does a remarkable job portraying Richard Nixon after leaving office and deciding to be interviewed by, at that time, a lightweight talk show host David Frost portrayed by Michael Sheen. Although the beginning was a bit slow, once the two actors got into the interviews, it was captivating. I forgot who won for best actor, but Langella was marvelous. Don't remember if Sheen was nominated for supporting actor, but he too deserved a nomination at least. As you know this was adapted from the Broadway play which can go either way for better or worse. From the folks who saw the play and the movie, they have told me they both were wonderful. So if you haven't seen this film, rent it. And if the production comes to a theater near you, see that as well.


Dancing With The Stars News:

For those of you who are interested the DWTS lineup was recently posted on AOL. I believe the show will star airing the third week in September. Here are this season's contestants:

Donny Osmond: Singer
Mya: R&B singer and actress
Michael Irwin: :Former NFL wide-receiver
Melissa Joan Hart: Actress (Sabrina the Teenage Witch)
Kelly Osbourne: Singer
Debi Mazar: Actress
Chuck Lidell: Light heavyweight champion
Natalie Coughlin: Olympic gold medalist in swimming
Joanna Drupa: Swimsuit model
Aaron Carter: Sincer
Tom DeLay: Former House majority leader
Kathy Ireland: Model
Ashley Hamilton: Actor
Mark Dacascos: Actor (host of Iron Chef America
Louie Vito: Pro snowboarder
Macy Gray: sing

Some good summer reads:

One advantage of retirement is that it has given me the opportunity to read lots of books that are not education related. Here are two that are based on leadership (OK I lie, they are a bit educational) and two that are great for the beach.

Good to Great by Jim Collins - This book, that has been on the best seller for ages, is an interesting account of thirteen companies that went from good companies to great ones and what it took to get there. (It is interesting to note, that one of the companies Circuit City has gone bankrupt since the publication of the book,.) There are great stories about the companies and their leaders that makes the book less dry than others.

Life's A Campaign by Chris Matthews - Even if you don't agree with Chris Matthews' political point of view or how he conducts his TV program, this is a quick and interesting read. Once again he shares personal stories about people in the news and how they taught him lessons for success.

Now some novels:

The Whole Truth by David Baldacci - I had this novel in my house for a long time and once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down,. It is a thriller that shows how too much information too quickly transmitted can cause horrible results. This is the first book I've read by Baldacci, but I understand it is part of a series. He hails from this area (Metropolitican DC) and puts familiar places in the novel like the Dulles Toll Road and Whiele Avenue. His style is like John Grisham and totally captures you from page one. A wonderful read.

The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James - This past year I read Pride and Prejudice with my book club. After reading it, Carol Flicker gave me this book which once again sat on my night stand for months. Once again when I picked it up, I couldn't stop reading it. It is historical fiction that enchants the reader as it tells of Jane's life based on memoirs found in the wall of an old house. You see how her life experiences effected her characters. If you are an Austen fan, you must read this novel.

Although I love the movies, there is so much that you can do to occupy your time.

Roberta

August 14

My last quote drew the most response ever. It seems everyone knew that "Then you jump first. No, I said. What's the matter with you? I can't swim. Why, you crazy? The fall will probably kill you."came from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid released in 1969 starring the hotties of the day Robert Redford and Paul Newman. The female lead was Katherine Ross. I wonder where she is today. But Kathy Luke was the first correct responder. Congratulations Kathy!

This week I received the following quote to use from Shirley Steinmetz. She promised not to guess. See if you know what movie this came from, :"Listen! Smell something?"

On Netflix:

Quantum of Solace - I ordered this film on Netflix for Sy as he has been a James Bond fan from the beginning. So....if you are one of the fans, you will love this movie. The plot is absurd, but the action is never ending. The stunts are amazing and Daniel Craig as Bond is fit and agile. The story picks up after CasinoRoyale so it you are not familiar with this film, you will be a little lost as I was. Bond seems to always be saving the world from some bad guy and this movie is no exception. To me the only bright spot wasJudi Dench recreating her role as M. If you want a mindless film, see this. For me, it was a waste of time.

On Netflix and Instant Viewing:

Autumn Hearts: A New Beginning - I put this on my list after the annual Jewish Film Festival. It was a film that looked promising, but I didn't get a chance to see. It has a remarkable cast: Susan Sarandon, Gabriel Byrne, Christopher Plummer and Max von Sydow, beautiful scenery but a very slow story with numerous unanswered questions. It is about a group of friends who reunite 35 years after their release from Drancy, a Nazi internment camp in France. How they got to the camp, Saradon character is American, Byrne character is Irish, is never explained. How they were spared is unclear. Apparently the von Sydow character made a deal with the Nazis, but that too is never fully explained. It really focused on their lives now, but those relationships were not fully developed either. It is based on a novel by Matt Cohen which I believe was entitled Mental Arithmetic. Perhaps if I had read the book, the movie would have made more sense.

Local Theater:

Wayside Inn/Theater - Middletown, VA - This past week, I had the opportunity to venture to the foot of the Shenandoah Mountains with a group I belong to to the Wayside Inn where we had a delightful lunch and then made our way down the block to the Wayside Theater to see a production of The Gin Game. All too often we dismiss local theater, but there is a wealth of talent to be seen there. This production features two actors who are members of Actors' Equity and have a long list of credits to their name. They were both marvelous in the play. The story itself is a bit depressing about two people who meet in an old age home. As I went with a Seniors' group I wondered if it was a glimpse of things to come. Take the opportunity to see local theater. It certainly is a lot cheaper than Washington DC and Broadway. (I am paying over $100 a ticket to see Jersey Boys this November and for that amount, I could almost get a season's subscription to a local company!!!)

Lots of good movies either in theaters now or opening this weekend. So escape the heat, and see a film.

Roberta

August 2

As you can see from the date, this should have been posted before the August 9th posting, but I don't know how to reorder, my apologies.

Well it happened, someone actually beat Yolanda to the punch, it must be noted that she did indeed correctly identify the quote, but Howard Kamen did it first by correctly identifying "The point is, ladies and gentlemen, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works" coming from Wall Street starring Michael Douglas. Eric was the first west coast person to identify it as well.

Since we saw Yoo-Hoo Mrs. Goldberg this week ( see review below), I thought I'd ask some trivia from the film. What was Gertrude Berg's real first name?

In local Theaters:

Yoo-Hoo Mrs. Goldberg - This documentary tells the story of Gertrude Berg. She truly was the Oprah of her time as she wrote, acted and oversaw everything that had to do with her program from radio to TV. Her dynasty also included clothing lines, a cookbook and product endorsement. The documentary follows Berg from her beginnings writing playlets for children in the Catskills to starring in our her show. Showing clips from her ground breaking sitcom "The Goldbergs" made the film very enjoyable. The comment all of us made after seeing the film was it played like something we would watch on cable. In fact, I believe it will be on a cable station shortly as the audience is quite limited. So when you see it listed, give it a look see. It is worth the 90 plus minutes.

On Netflix and Instant Play

Alice's House - I watched this foreign film on my computer and all I can say is don't waste your time. It was so slow moving and the story left lots of unresolved issues. How it was an official selection at the 2007 Chicago International Film Festival is beyond me. The blurb was inviting; manicurist Alice living with her selfish husband, mother and three sons goes through her mundane life until an innocent flirtation changes everything. There was no excitement or engaging drama for me here. Spend you time better reading a book or watching some inane show on TV.

New on cable TV:

Drop Dead Diva - Although I don't usually tune into the Lifetime channel, The Washington Post had a review of this new TV show and I thought I'd give it a try. It has already aired three times as it is shown on Sundays at 9:00, but you can catch up online by going on to the Lifetime site, It is a dramady in the style of The Starter Wife. This show doesn't have any familiar stars, but it is extremely entertaining. In a nutshell, a very slim not too bright blond dies at the same time an overweight brainy attorney is shot. Next scene is in a Heaven/Hell holding room. By pressing a button on the gatekeeper's computer, the blond is transported into the attorney's body. She retains the attorney's brains, but her own memories. Far fetched, but engaging. The law cases are interesting and not too heady so far. Tune it in and decide for yourself.

Looks like it will be another sticky, hot, rainy Sunday on the east coast, so catch up on a movie.

Roberta