"It Only Takes A Moment..."

Well,  finally watched WALL*E and loved it.  Missed it at the cineplex, so saw it on the intimacy of a TV.  From the opening until the end, I was mesmerized by this little robot.  If robots were human, he definitely would be innocent, naive, and a great friend to be with.  His curiosity about his environment and his little pet made him a lovable, likable new addition to the Disney/Pixar pantheon of animated heroes. He is a child in a candy store; aside from the critters who also inhabit Earth.  He is happy with his music, from an "obscure" musical.  I wonder why Hello, Dolly! was the film to represent humanity or the beings that WallE is curious to learn about?  Nonetheless, the scenes chosen from that film were fine.  Choreographer Michael Kidd would love WALL*E's attempt at "Put On Your Sunday Clothes." And to think this little robot is the caretaker for a deserted, ravaged Earth.  And when his future sweetheart arrives, she could care less about our little hero.  She was on a mission; without Wall*E's help, though, it would not have been a success.  Which brings us to what happened to humankind.  Not a pretty picture, but it is scary to see corpulent beings doing nothing but eating, sleeping and electronically entertained.  Hmm, time for a reality check?  But the human spirit is strong, as seen in the final scenes.  You set your mind to something, and you will achieve it.  I must admit I got teary eyed when our hero and his girl unite.  And to hear the song, "It Only Takes A Moment" sung by a young Michael Crawford and a beautiful Marianne McAndrew, only made the heart strings get tugged a tad harder. It is a sentimental love song from the somewhat golden age of Broadway show tunes.   Sure, it was a sappy moment, but it's fun to get sappy and teary eyed, no?  People will either love this film or hate it.   Loved it for its innocence and daring depiction of humanity in an artificial gravity environment that makes humans into Jabbas.  OK, watch it and enjoy it, for gosh sake's.  The animation is incredible, particularly the views of the ravaged Earth.  And the robots looked really real.  Walt Disney would be proud of this accomplishment.

"Out there, there's a world outside of Yonkers,

Way out there beyond this hicktown Barnaby

There's a slick town, Barnaby..."

Who'da Thunk?

Mild, meek, trusting Felix Gaeta...starting a civil war amongst the crew and citizens of the Colonial Fleet?  Wow!  What a great episode!  And did Adama even have an inkling?  No...I think he was caught by surprise as were many on the command deck.  Frustration?  Mad at Starbuck for her shooting his leg that he eventually lost part of?  Who knows where this is leading to?  How exciting to see how far this series has evolved.  Earth was just a teaser...the real story is survival out in space, looking for that elusive home.  So Gaeta took matters into his own hands and thus the revolution commenced.  And how about Vice President Zerick?  Richard Hatch probably is enjoying this darker Galactica without the campiness of the original.  When you think about it, it seems that only humans and Cylons are the only civilizations out there in the universe.  Nobody else.  How many will survive this uprising?  Too bad this series did not go to a 5th year, but maybe it's for the best.  Felix Gaeta...who'da thunk?

Betty La Fea

Last night's episode of Lost was wonderful.  As Alice said, "curiouser and curiouser."  I can understand why some people stopped watching the series due to all the flashbacks and introduction of new characters, but in a sci-fi/fantasy/adventure realm, isn't that part of the drama?  Speaking of drama, tonight is Ugly Betty.  Have not watched it since December, and being a "Betty Buddy" one has to watch.  The American incarnation of the popular Columbian soap is hilarious and has a great message to a lot of us...you may be "ugly" on the outside, but if people really look, beauty from the inside can transform into anything.  And dreams can come true.  The ensemble cast is fantastic and funny.  Watch it, if you have not done so, and you can escape and laugh about poor Betty's problems with familia, trabajo, and Amor!

"La la, la la!

You'll be popular, 

Just not quite as popular as ME!"

Perdidos

So, it is back to reality.  And tonight, it's back to that wonderful world of escapism.  The beginning of the new/mid season of LOST.   It's back, and after Battlestar Galactica this is one series that tackles the imagination.  Nothing major to write about it...just that it's one of my faves on the airwaves.  Sure hope that the mid-season is as riveting as the first half.  Few of my friends were fans, but lost interest due to the many plot entanglements.  But it is definitely a thought provoker.  Enjoy!

A New Beginning ...

It is the 20th of January.  An ordinary day on the calendar.  But to our Nation, and the world, it is a new beginning for not only citizens of the United States, but a day of hope for the citizens of the world.  It is Inauguration Day for the 44th President of the United States, Barack H. Obama.  Never in our wildest dreams would we have thought to have seen a man of color elected to become leader of a mighty nation.  Dreams do come through, through hard work, persistence, hope and faith!  Who knows, someday we may be celebrating the inauguration of a Latina or Asian woman!!

The well being of our nation is what we all desire.  It is going to take a lot of work and patience.  I believe the Obama administration will come through and our ills will slowly disappear.  It's that first step into getting things done that is the most difficult, but that first step will allow us to take that journey, bumpy as it may get, but we will reach our next destination.

So, here is to the future of our nation...the children, who now have a role model that proudly states anyone can make it to the top!  Work hard!  Persevere!

"What if the mightiest word is love, love beyond marital, filial, national.  Love that casts a widening pool of light.  Love with need to preempt

 grievance."

Elizabeth Alexander / Inaugural Poem

If One Person...

One person can beat a drum

And make enough noise for ten

One person can blow a horn

And that little boom!

And that little blare!

Can make a hundred others care

If one person can hold a torch

And light up the sky again

And one little voice

That's squeaking a song

Can make a million voices strong

If one person can beat a drum

And one person can blow a horn

If one person can hold a torch

The one person can change the world

There may be an army of them

And only and handful of us

How can a poor little band

Try to fight a regime?

There may be a legion of them

And only a parcel of us

But it isn't the size of the fist

It's the size of the dream!

"One Person" from the musical Dear World

Music and lyrics by Jerry Herman

The 5th Cylon Was Not Dee

And the colonial fleet did make it to Earth.  But shocker of shockers...Earth was colonized by Cylons!   The 13th Tribe traveled across the universe and landed on Earth. Apparently a nuclear holocaust, similar to the conflagration that destroyed the 12 Colonies, occurred on Earth, presumably by the "toasters" developed on Earth. 

An archaeological dig discovered a different style of Centurion.  (What would Dr. Zachary Smith think of his homeworld now?...uh...sorry, wrong series!)  It's a pity we're down to the last 9 (as of now) episodes of this award winning and imagination capturing series. And who is the 5th Cylon?  Someone no one would have suspected.  So, do they leave Earth or remain?  We shall see...

 

Just who is the 5th Cylon?

Did the Colonial surivors reach Earth?  Hmmmm...or another planet that was ravaged by a nuclear or galactic catastrophe.  As the ads state, the truth will be known.  10 final episodes...the anticipation grows!  Long live Battlestar Galactica!

Why am I the darling of the BIM elite?

I first read about The Apple in Starlog, a science fiction magazine that began in the late 70s.  There was a brief paragraph describing a new film that would hopefully gain the cult status of another great rock musical, The Rocky Horror Picture Show."  Then, at Tower Records (Colombus and Bay store) I saw the soundtrack and purchased it.  Upon first hearing it, I was actually impressed.   Loved the music...a wonderful eclectic mix of rock, disco, ballads, showtunes.  A great film, I thought.  Of course, it did not have a theatrical release in the San Francisco Bay Area until I saw it on a Friday at night on CBS...a late, late, late movie!  Truth be known, I was enthralled, entranced and would now enjoy the songs knowing how they were placed in the film.  "BIM" is still a hard driving pop rock anthem that could have made its mark. (pardon the pun, if you saw it you'll know)

The actors, the majority of them, were brand new to me.  The only ones I recognized were Vladek Sheybal and Joss Ackland...the former a character actor in British films and Joss Ackland, "Juan Peron" opposite Elaine Paige's "Evita."  The others?  Newcomers, I supposed.  Never heard of them, but their performances were rather enjoyable.  George Gilmour, Alan Love, Grace Kennedy and Ray Shell.  Great to watch stars in the making.  Ray Shell did go on to become "Rusty" in the roller skating extravaganza, Starlight Express. 

 Which brings me to the character of "Bibi" portrayed innocently by Catherine Mary Stewart.  Hmmm, the name sounds so familiar.  Aha!  Night of the Comet!  Never could I connect her with The Apple.  Her character went from somewhat innocent to totally vulgar.  (She did know the name of the fashion designer Mr. Boogaloo had contracted.)  But, a graceful performance.  No matter how much she was tempted by Shake and Mr. Boogaloo, Bibi remained faithful to Alphie and to herself!!  

 The Apple is a fun film that has apparently become a cult-status flick.  It's so wonderfully bad that you're gonna love it or hate it!  I include it in my "love it!" category.  

Check it out.  Be tolerant of certain scenes.  Try to enjoy the music.  And as a child who colors outside the lines, enjoy the colorful visuals.  BIM's the only way!!

"Love, the universal melody...la la la la la la"

 

Planet X?

What can you say about this prophetic (?) film about two celestial bodies that will collide with our planet?  Of course, it is based on a novel written in the 30s.  But in light of the entire 2012 Mayan calendar/end of the world/new age of enlightenment/return to the home planet controversy, this film hits home.  How can humanity survive, but build spaceships that will accommodate 40 or so humans and some animals in a modern Noah's Ark.  And, microfilming the best of humanity's literature and science.   For a disastrous situation set in the 50s, humanity sure could construct a rocket that would survive the collision of the worlds.

For a 50s film, the SFX were pretty good for its day.  George Pal was a genius for his day.  But, I digress.  Two bodies are going to come into our solar system.  One body,  the star Bellus, will pass by the earth and cause cataclysms "beyond our mind's dimensions."  Earthquake, tsunamis, volcanos, etc.  Few surivors, probably.  Of course, the military around the world planet conducts a very orderly evacuation.  What's scary is that there are rescue missions or errands of mercy to help the survivors.  Why?  Earth is going to be eventually destroyed!  A few weeks later, Zyra, the new planet comes and collides with Earth and Ka Plowie!!!  Our heroes have left Earth on a rocket ship to land on Zyra.  What do they find there?  Well, there was no movie sequel, but there was a written one.  (alien civilization)

So, with the plot of this film in mind, consider the following...why are the Norwegians building vaults to save all the species of plants?  Supposedly the remake The Day the Earth Stood Still is a modern day warning that was OKed by our government...perchance Hollywood is performing a service to humanity by getting us ready for the big close encounter.  

It's fun to speculate and imagine what could happen.  Of course, Earth will sail on.  There might be changes on the surface, but humanity has a strong will to survive.  And we will.

"If our calculations prove to be correct, this will be the most frightening discovery ever made."