December 17

In Theaters:

Philomena -  Does Judi Dench do anything that is not first class and top rated?  This film, based on true events, pulls at your heart strings and makes you angry at the same time.  It is about a woman looking for her son she was forced to give up and how the Sisters not only made it happen, but prevented her from knowing his whereabouts.  Although the topic is heavy, Dench brings a bit of lightness to it with her wit and the wonderful screenplay.  Steve Coogan, playing the reporter who helps her find her son, is a great counterpart to Dench.  This film is a wonderful antidote to the present "epic" films out today.  Do yourself a favor and see this one. 

Special Reporter Sy Sherman's review of -:

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - Is certainly a hard "hobbit" to break.  Part two of the series picks up right where part one, the Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, leaves off.  Bilbo Baggins, played by Martin Freeman, quietly and convincingly takes center stage along with Ian McKellen, who plays Thorin, the leader of a band of thirteen dwarves, who together with Bilbos, are on a quest to reclaim their home and the treasure of Erebor (the Lonely Mountain) from the fire-breathing Dragon, "Smaug". Although it seemed strange to watch a dragon speak, English no less, the nearly three hour movie uses entertaining slick special effects to maintain it's frenzied pace throughout. Part two of the series is definitely worth seeing even for those not given to fantasy. But if you plan on seeing part two, I strongly suggest seeing part one first. And for those of you who can't get enough of the Hobbit franchise, don't worry, part three will probably be here by the time the holidays roll around next year.

On Netflix:

White House Down -  Sy is nominating this for the worst movie ever made.  I don't quite agree with him although it was quite stupid.  There was more shooting up in the White House and ridiculous situations than I can enumerate.  That being said, I do like Jamie Foxx who played the President and Channing Tatum is really hot.  James Woods and Richard Jenkins play the bad guys with Maggie Gyllenhaal is the female addition.  The young girl, Joey King, who plays Tatum's daughter is good.  In a nutshell, good cast, ridiculous story-line.

 (Sy is protesting this rating, he said )

At Arena:

The Power of Two - Although this cabaret has closed, I wanted to direct your attention to these two performers - Nicholas Rodriguez and Eleasha Gamble.  The two starred in Arena's production of Oklahoma a few seasons back.  They sang for 90 minutes and were just wonderful.  Gamble's voice, in particular, is so versatile.  They sang show tunes, some Joni Mitchell and pop.  Gamble will be in this summer's touring company of Lion King at the Kennedy Center and Rodriguez will be in Arena's Mother Courage.  It was just such a delightful concert.  Take note of these stars!.  In addition, we got the tickets from Goldstar which was an added bonus.  The concert took place at the Kogod Cradle which is Arena's intimate theater. 

My friend Carla sent this information to me and it was confirmed by snoops so it is legit.  Be careful!

If only the people who came up with these schemes would put all that ingenuity and cleverness to some positive purpose we might  really have something! CHECK IT OUT : From a friend: (It originated in  Florida) Just when you thought you'd heard it all. This scam is actually very  clever. Be very careful out there!   This one could easily slip by most  anyone - beware of people bearing gifts. The following is a recounting of the  incident from the victim: Wednesday a week ago, I had a phone call from  someone saying that he was from some outfit called: "Express Couriers,"(The  name could have been anything) he asked if I was going to be home because  there was a package delivery for me that required a signature . The caller  said that the delivery would arrive at my home in roughly an hour, and sure  enough, about an hour later, a uniformed delivery man turned up with a  beautiful basket of flowers and wine. I was very surprised since it did not  involve any special occasion or holiday, and I certainly didn't expect  anything like it. Intrigued about who had sent me such a gift, I inquired as  to who the sender was. The deliveryman's reply was, he was only delivering the  gift package, but allegedly a card was being sent separately... (the card  has never arrived!) There was also a consignment note with the gift.   He  then went on to explain that because the gift contained alcohol, there was a  $3.50 "delivery / verification charge," providing proof that he had actually  delivered the package to an adult of legal drinking age, and not just left it  on the doorstep where it could be stolen or taken by anyone, especially a  minor.   This sounded logical and I offered to pay him cash. He then said  that the delivery company required payment to be by credit or debit card only,  so that everything is properly accounted for, and this would keep help in  keeping a legal record of the transaction. He added couriers not needing to  carry a bunch of cash, would make them less likely targets for  robbery.   My husband, who by this time was standing beside me, pulled  his wallet out of his pocket with the credit/debit card, and 'John,' the  "delivery man," asked my husband to swipe his card on a small mobile card  machine. It had a small screen and keypad where Frank was also asked to enter  the card's PIN and security number. A receipt was printed out and given to us  as our copy of the transaction. He then said everything was in order, and  wished us good day.   To our horrible surprise, between Thursday and the  following Monday, $4,000 had been charged / withdrawn from our credit/debit  account at various ATM machines. It appeared that somehow the "mobile  credit card machine," which the deliveryman carried now had all the info  necessary to create a "dummy" card with all our card details after my husband  swiped our card and entered the requested PIN and security number.   Upon finding out about the illegal transactions on our card, we immediately  notified the bank which issued us a new card, and our credit/debit account was  closed.   We also personally went to the Police, where it was confirmed  that it is definitely a scam because several households had been similarly  hit.   WARNING: Be wary of accepting any "surprise gift or package,"  which you neither expected nor personally ordered, especially if it involves  any kind of payment as a condition of receiving the gift or package. Also,never accept anything if you do not personally know or there is no proper  identification of who the sender is.   Above all, the only time you should give out any personal credit/debit card information is when you  yourself initiated the purchase or transaction!   Pass this on, it may just prevent someone else from being swindled. Once again, I wish you all a very Happy New Year. Roberta

December 12

On Netflix:

Delicacy - I guess I am continuing in my French phase.  This subtitled film stars Audrey Tautao as she plays a young woman who is brought out of grief by a caring male co worker.  It is very sweet.  Not a lot of action and slowly played out, but a lovely little film.  On a cold, snowy day a good way to pass the time. 

Hello I Must Be Going - This indie film starts Melanie Lynskey who played Charlie Sheen's crazy girlfriend on "Two and a Half Men."  In the film she plays a young woman who moves back into her parents' home after a divorce.  She finds the meaning of love in an unexpected way.  Although a bit slow at times, the story was a good one and well developed.  It was good to see Blythe Danner and John Rubinstein as her parents.  I might wait until you can get this on streaming or it appears on the Sundance channel rather than using up a place in your queue.  

On Netflix and Streaming:

The Sapphires - What a delightful film based on true events.  A group of Australian aborigine singers (three sisters and one cousin in the film, but in real life two and two) want to sing.  With the discrimination of the 50's through 70's against aborigines in Australia, they had limited opportunity until they decide to sing to the soldiers in Viet Nam.  A  feel good film.  

A note about the recent The Sound of Music Live 

I know Carrie Underwood and her co star Stephen Moyer were panned in this production, but she does have a lovely voice and you can't help but love the score.  For that reason alone, I enjoyed the production.  Underwood should keep singing and either get a better acting coach or leave the acting to others.  The male lead was a bit stiff, but I can't say that I hated it.  Tears always come to my eyes when I watch this film.  As usual Audra McDonald was superb.  You also have to give them credit in that it was live and no major flub was committed.  I did like how they moved from scene to scene i.e. from the house to the chapel.   Also remember this production was based on the Broadway show not the classic Julie Andrews' film which is the gold standard for this production.  Just my thoughts

A shout out to high school music programs:

Last night the Woodson music department put on their annual winter concert.  Over two hundred students are involved in this program.  Groups included Women's, Men's,  Mixed Choral, Select Men's and Women's Ensemble so it was a jammed packed evening.  What struck me the most that in this day of being politically correct, this program had a wonderful balance of Christmas, Chanukah and music sung in other languages ie Spanish, Russian which simply highlighted our diversity.  I love the disclaimer in the program - "The Fairfax County Public Schools Music Program of Studies requires the performance of literature that is both sacred and secular.  Balance of music selected and performed from among historical and contemporary composers, genres and periods is achieved through the course of a year's instruction and not within any individual concert."  Well stated!.  

Just in case I don't post before the end of the year as we are going away, I would like to wish all my friends who celebrate Christmas a very Merry Christmas and everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year.

Roberta

December 1

In Theaters:

The Book Thief - This film is based on the book by the same name which I recently read.  It tells the story of the relationship of Liesel,  her foster parents and the Jew they are hiding against the backdrop of the horrors of Nazi Germany. Sophie Nelisse as Leisel is wonderful and Geoffrey Rush, Emily Watson, Ben Schnetzer and Nico Liersch give convincing performances.  As in any adaptation, parts had to be left out or not fully developed, but in general a good adaptation.  Although this was a "youth" book, I would not recommend it to teens as they would find it slow. 

  

On Netflix and Instant Streaming:

Starbuck - A Thanksgiving tradition in our family is that the day after Thanksgiving, the Shermans, Kamens and Rubins go to the movies.  This year the bulk of the group went to see The Hunger Games movie while three Rubins went to see Delivery Man.  I stayed home with Abby, Amanda and Paula, but I remembered that I had Starbuck on my list and it was streaming.  Starbuck is the French Canadian version of Delivery Man.  In fact it came out just a few months ago and when the review came out for Delivery Man they compared the two.  Although I didn't see the Vince Vaugh one, I did watch this one.  It is quite delightful. Starbuck does not refer to the coffee chain, but the name used by the main character when he donated sperm. You probably know the story, but it is about a sperm donor who finds out he has fathered over 500 children and goes about to meet a few of them.  I thought this would be a great TV series as he could visit a different child each week and stay on the air for many seasons! The actors were not familiar to me,but funny and touching.  My brother Jeff said he like the American version and as he related scenes to me, they were exactly the same in this version.  So if you want to save yourself at least $9, just see this one

The Little Theatre of Alexandria:

My Temple's Sisterhood planned a dinner theater party and chose the Little Theatre of Alexandria's production of The  39 Steps as the production to see.  It was not the Alfred Hitchock version, but a spoof (I believe) since I never saw the original movie. Having seen much community theater, this performance left a lot to be desired.  The theater is lovely, but the production from sets to the acting was in line with a high school production.  In fact, I've been HS production (Bill!) that were much better.  The evening was fun because we were with fun people.  One of the actors was very good, but the others so so.  Although tickets are inexpensive and it is good to support community theater, this one was not one I could recommend.

A note about the Worldgate theater in Herndon -   It has recently been acquired by AMC and with the acquisition, they renovated the theaters.  The nine Rubin/Sherman/Kamens who went could not say enough about the theater. We went to the theater to see The Book Thief and agree with them all.   The seats are recliners. Sy said all they needed was a waitress to take his order.  You can also reserve your seats in advance or do it when you purchase your tickets at the box office.  The only minus is that if the film is a bore, there is a good possibility you might fall asleep!

DWTS:

Well it is all over and there were no surprises.  Amber Riley of Glee won with Corbin Bleu coming in second and Jack Osbourne coming in a respectable third.  My complaint is that although Amber and Corbin are not ballroom dancers, they are familiar with production numbers and moving while Jack was a true novice.  Not until they change who they recruit to dance, this will always be a problem in my mind.  

Happy belated Thanksgiving to all and a Happy Chanukah to those continuing to celebrate the holiday this week.

Roberta