Carol Frank, Betty, Yolanda, Allison correctly identified " Ronny, don't fall off." coming from Secretariat.
Try this one:
“A real woman could stop you from drinking.”
“It’d have to be a real BIG woman.”
Well we are back from
SF after a lovely visit with family. Unfortunately there was a fee for
inf-light movies, so I caught up on my magazine and novel reading. See
below for a review of the book I just finished. I am now back at OLLI
and am taking a course on Gene Kelly. I might not make the next four
classes due to conflicts, but did see the first film they showed which I
reviewed below.
On Netflix:
Young Adult - An interesting dramady starring Charlize Theron,
Patton Oswalt and Patrick Wilson. A bit slow at times, but an
interesting topic; in a nutshell you can't find happiness by going
back. Theron play the popular girl in High School who tries to rekindle
a romance with her former boyfriend who is now happily married with a
newborn. Charlize Theron is an extremely versatile actress who does not
disappoint. I particularly liked Patton Oswalt who plays a disabled
former classmate. The film grew on me as I watched it. See it for
yourself. 
Cover Girl - This 1944 musical features a very young Rita Hayworth,
Gene Kelly, Phil Silvers and Eve Arden in starring roles. The story is
the usual one - boy and girl are best friends but really in love; girl
is discovered and appears on Broadway and leaves the Brooklyn club they
both perform in and I assume they get together in the end as I had to
leave before the movie ended. The music is by Jerome Kern and George
Gershwin and the dancing effortless. The only song I knew was "Long Ago
and Far Away" There is an interesting scene where Kelly dances with
his shadow. It is amazing to see these actors in their prime. This
film was really a showcase for Hayworth, not Kelly. Some interesting
notes about the movie are:
- The
film features cameo appearances by Jinx Falkenburg and Anita Colby as
themselves and a little-known starlet named Shelly Winters as one of the
young autograph hounds
- Kelly reprised his role as Danny McGuire again -- 36 years later -- in 1980's Xanadu.
Netflix and HBO
Dolphin Tale
- This is a feel good family movie I watched on HBO. Harry Connick Jr.
,Ashley Judd, Morgan Freeman and Kris Kirstofferson are the known
stars, but the young actor who plays Sawyer, Nathan Gamble, and the
dolphin Winter are the real stars. It is based on a true story although
all the facts presented have been embellished for the movies the heart
of the story remains. In the film a dolphin is found on the beach after
being trapped in a crab trap. His tail has to be removed when it
became infected and then the problem is that he does not have a tail to
help him swim correctly. The story is sappy, but made me tear up. For a
nice film, see this one.
A good read:
Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks - This novel, although
fiction, is based on the life of Caleb Cheeshahteaumauk the first Native
American to graduate from Harvard. In truth it is the story of the
relationship of Caleb and Bethia Mayfield the daughter of the Minister
who first converts Caleb and sets his course onto being educated at
Harvard. Their story, although fiction, is touching and sheds a light
on life not only for the Native American, but women at that time. It is
a bit hard to get into, but once you do, you will find it a wonderful
read.
The movie selections are still poor so catch up on some of the older ones you might have missed.
Roberta
Lucy, Juli and Allison W., Jennifer Kenney, Betty, Florrie and Carol Frank correctly identified " All airlines have crashed at one time or another, that doesn't mean that they are not safe. QANTAS. QANTAS never crashed. QANTAS? Never crashed. Oh
that's gonna do me a lot of good because QANTAS doesn't fly to Los
Angeles out of Cincinnati, you have to get to Melbourne! Melbourne,
Australia in order to get the plane that flies to Los Angeles! "
coming from Rain Man.
Try this one courtesy of Sy:
" Ronny, don't fall off."
In Theaters:
Where Do We Go Now? - This foreign film in limited distribution is a
dramady that tells the story of Christians and Muslins who live in
peace in a small village in Lebanon. When distubrances occur in nearby
villages, the men want to fight, but the women do some unusual things to
divert their attention and confuse them to the point they don't know
what to do. It is an interesting movie with subtitles.
On Netflix:
We Bought A Zoo - What a lovely movie! It is based on the true
story of Benjamin Mee who bought the Dartmoor Zoo in Devon England and
turned it into a renown zoo/park.. Matt Damon does a fine job as
Benjamin and his co- stars Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Haden Church and
Elle Fanning, Dakota's, younger sister are part of the ensemble cast.
But the actor who steals the movie and every scene she is in is Maggie
Elizabeth Jones the actress who plays Benjamin's nine year old
daughter. She is beyond cute and a great little actress as well. For a
movie that will entertain the entire family, see this one.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - This film was nominated for
best picture although it did not receive overall good reviews from the
critics. I have mixed feelings about the film. It is not that I didn't
like it, but I just liked it. The young actor, Thomas Horn, playing
the son is terrific. He portrays a child who is on the spectrum dealing
with a very difficult situation in an extremely realistic way. It has a
star studded cast with Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Viola Davis to name a
few. Max von Sydow was nominated for an Academy Award in a supporting
role and he does indeed earn that title. I think those who read the
novel will enjoy this film even more although I have a friend who told
me in advance how much this film stayed with her after seeing it. See
it for yourself and make your decision. 
I am off for a few days, so don't look for a new Roberta's Reviews until
the end of the month. In the meantime, if it gets warm cool off at a
movie theater.
Roberta
