A little bit of everything...from favorite movies, plays, songs, books, places, thoughts...the things that are near and dear to our hearts and imagination; to inspire the curious.
It is hard to believe that one of the funniest men in the entertainment world has died at the age of 63. Robin Williams made us laugh and even cry. His films ranged from hysterical to thought provoking to mysterious. I will remember him as the alien Mork on the sit-com Mork and Mindy. His Holocaust dramatic film Jakob the Liar showed how this funny man could handle serious subject matters. And his wonderful Patch Adams showed a nobleness and humor in the medical profession.
He leaves us a wonderful entertainment legacy. Thank you Robin Williams for the laughter; our world will miss you!
Soap operas have become an endangered species. I recall that every day each of the major networks had soaps that had a loyal following. In the 60s, my two back-to-back favorites were One Life to Live and the cult classic Dark Shadows. Today there are just a few remaining…but, I digress. Unless you watch the telenovelas. Those notorious Spanish language soap operas that are made in Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina and Mexico. The titles of the soaps range from character names, such as Esmeralda, Rosalinda or exotic titles such as La Pasion de Gavilanes (The Passion of Hawks) or La Mujer del Vendaval (The Woman of the Vendaval). I normally do not watch the hardcore nighttime soaps because they conflict with the other networks. Since January I have been hooked in a particular soap Que Pobres Tan Ricos which has become a wonderful guilty pleasure.
Pictured above are the Menchaka family and their friends: La Guendi, Tizoc, Don Chuy, Perla Ivette, Carmelita and little Emiliano. They live in a "colonia" or neighborhood in Mexico City that is not quite for the wealthy, rather a blue collar neighborhood where the Spanish sounds very uneducated yet colorful. La Guendi, hysterically portrayed by Gloria Zamora, owns a beauty salon. Don Chuy was a professional wrestler, "El Hijo de Sumatra." He now runs a restaurant that his daughter Guadalupe and their friend Carmelita cook for. Guadalupe is portrayed by Zuria Vega- a tough single mom who will do anything to protect her family.
In the above pic you can see the wealthy ones, the Ruizpalacios…Miguelangel, Ana Sofia, daVinci, Frida and Leonardo. Apparently, Miguelangel has been accused falsely of laundering money from the family's publishing company. Their home is taken away and they accompany Miguelangel as he flees from the law. The family claims to move to Italy, but end up in hiding in the Menchaka home. The stories revolve around the mishaps of the rich vs. the working class. Miguelangel is trying to find out how to clear his name and the family must adapt to their new social class. Miguelangel is comically portrayed by Jaime Camil and he seems to have mastered slapstick comedy that works well in this soap.
Mark Tacher portrays Alejo, the villain of the story, who is the one who robbed the money and has accused Miguelangel of the wrongdoing. His attorney, Vilma Teran, is hopelessly in love with Alejo and will do anything to grab his attention.
The villainesses of the piece are wonderfully portrayed by Ingrid Martz, as Minerva Fontanet, and her deliciously wicked mother Isela, portrayed by Raquel Pankowski. These two get into hair brained schemes and malaprops worthy of Lucy and Ethel. Minerva loves Miguelangel, but when he flees, she eventually marries Alejo. Oh, both mother and daughter are nouveau riche and gold diggers extraordinaire.
The soap is midway through its course. Spanish soaps usually have 150-200 episodes and come to a big happy ending. The villains also face their just desserts. This soap also reflects social problems that the world faces: dealing with the elderly with dementia; battle of the social classes; homosexuality; alcoholism. These problems are treated with tact and humor as not to offend.
As stated, watching the Spanish soaps is a guilty pleasure. Entertaining and fabulous even though join-Spanish speakers label them as vehicles for over-acting. But that shows the passion of the Latin! Some Spanish networks have closed captioning in English; worth a viewing even if you do nor speak Spanish.
So much has happened since Thanksgiving 2013. I got deathly due to diabetic complications and needless to say I had a below the knee amputation. I am living with this consequence as I did not take care of my health. It's that damned Latin image that "I'm alright and I will survive." Wrong! It's a lesson learned that I will have to live with the rest of my life. Currently I am in a rehab center working with great therapists. Essentially I am learning to walk again. My upper body strength is the pits and I am slowly working on that. The prognosis is that I will be getting a prosthetic as soon as the leg heals. This is where time is a factor…and I am learning patience.
This experience has also shown me the love and warmth my family, school family, and friends had shown me. I still need to give a good hearty cathartic tear fest. It isn't until you are in such a situation that you realize love has surrounded me but I failed to recognize it. My nieces and nephews: Julie, Christina, Lorenzo, Andy; my brother Sergio and sister-in-law Miriam; my other sister-in-law Gloria. The Gonzalezes: Aunt Amanda, Rudy, Beta, Rick, Raquel, Lexy and Tori. Manuel and Pat Mondoy. Dorita y Enrique; Enriquito and Veronica (the other Perezes) and my wonderful school family: Pat Keeley, Grace Rigor, Danny Ballesteros, Dorothy Vigna, Sheila Guzman. Their visits have added energy to my healing process. Not to forget Sister Chris, Sister Lisa, Sister Marianne and Sister Elizabeth. And all the phone calls from distant friends and family.
Rene Bonilla is taking care of my beloved Papi and the best neighbors, Wolf and Gloria have offered to help. And Lori Hartwick has been an angel visiting with her roommate Leigh Ann. I am truly blessed.
Now, this is not a feel sorry for me episode. I encourage positive thoughts and lots of laughter my way.
I plan to be back at work and life resuming to its full potential. Please keep me in your prayers and good thoughts. Until soon.
Upon the recommendation of a friend, I purchased this film. I am glad I did. What does happen to celebrities that once bathed in the limelight and are forced, due to illness or other things, retire in a home? That is basically the story of QUARTET.
My favorite British actress, Maggie Smith, is wonderful as Jean Horton, former opera diva. Unbeknownst to her, her former husband is also a resident. He does not want anything to do with her and she is ready to apologize. Tom Courtenay portrays her ex, Reginald. He does have a wonderful scene with young students who come to hear a lecture about opera. He tries to explain opera; he even does research on rap and hip-hop. He explains that in opera, the character is stabbed in the back with a knife, then sings about the betrayal before dying. The young student also tries to explain rap to the opera singer by rapping a comparison of opera and rap. It's a clever scene.
Billy Connolly and Pauline Collins round out the quartet. Billy loves to flirt with the director of the home who is married. Pauline Collins, also a former diva, is beginning to show signs of dementia and her character is very childlike and innocent. Their goal is to have Jean join them in the Quartet from "Rigoletto." Do they succeed?
What brought me to tears is the fact that the elderly are an aspect of society that we forget about. The residents of the home were famous in their heyday, and now they are forgotten or are voices on recordings recalling their glory days. Makes me think of contemporary singers and how they will live their lives when they are past 60.
It is a bittersweet comedy to be thoroughly enjoyed. The opening song is "Brindisi" from LA TRAVIATA, I believe. My knowledge of opera is non-existent, as my knowledge of musical theatre is
existent. I believe this film has opened up my curiosity into the world of opera. Enjoy!
Recently I purchased The Cecil B. DeMille Collection of DVDs. One of the films in this set is The Sign of the Cross. I had seen this film many years ago on TV and always wanted to have this in my collection. I would say it was the Quo Vadis? of the early 1930s. In fact, I found it a tad better than the technicolor spectacle of the early 1950s.
This film was made before the notorious Hollywood Production Code existed, therefore the scenes were very racy, to say the least, and provacative. Example: Claudette Colbert as the villainous empress Poppeaea is introduced bathing in the milk of donkeys. And in her bathing pool you could see her rather seductive curves being caressed by said milk. There is a scene later in the film depicting a Roman "orgy" that has subtle lesbian hints! Quite a risk taker that Mr. De Mille!!
The plot of the film is Roman military officer, Marcus Superbus, meets young Christian woman, Mercia, and it's love at first sight.
Nero is portrayed by Charles Laughton. He seems bored with his job as emperor and would rather be delving into the arts. Perfect casting. I wish he had more scenes, but his portrayal of Nero is decadent, much like Peter Ustinov in later years. Claudette Colbert's Poppeaea is sensuous; her costumes are ever so Hollywood "Roman."
The scenes depicting the games, where gladiators and martyrs meet, are pretty racy for the time. Gladiator battles depicted are gory, by 1930s standards. The demise of women martyrs, scantily clad, leads me to believe the Romans loved to add sex to people about to die. Kind of scary since today we have crowds cheering at events where women, and even men, are in skin tight clothing and ready to do battle be it at wresting or some other athletic event. These arena scenes are probably the closest Roman recreation of the debauchery that was Rome.
Of course, the Christians sing hymns on their way to martyrdom. The closing scene is very reminiscent of 1953s The Robe. I did shed a tear or two.
Overall, an excellent retelling of ancient Rome. Watch it with an open mind and realize it is the product of an era where film making was still a novel art. Cecil B. De Mille was a pioneer at directing films with casts of thousands. It's easy to day, with technology and CGIs to recreate any epoch of history; but there is nothing like watching films where the only technology was the camera. Films of this type would be an expensive undertaking today!
Today is the ceremonial start of this incredible 1000 mile race across the wilderness and scenic beauty that is the grand state of Alaska. Sunday the 3rd of March the race begins. Over 60 mushers and their sleds and amazing canines.
This past week and the upcoming week my students have been doing research on Alaska, picked a musher to follow and have started to record the Alaskan weather to later create a weather bar graph. My students have also researched hypothermia and how it may affect both human and canine contestants. They have been very receptive and happy we've put our traditional subjects to the side for a few weeks. Fear not! They will be reading, writing and solving math problems...but with an Iditarod theme! On Friday the 8th of March, we will have a school assembly with three huskies that have raced the Iditarod and their owners. I am looking forward to this a lot! Will keep you updated this week...hopefully!!
My involvement with this musical started back in the mid 1980s when the Original London Cast album came out with Colm Wilkison (Valjean), Patti LuPone (Fantine), and Frances Ruffelle (Eponine). In 1987 I was able to see Les Miz on Broadway with country singer Gary Morris as "Valjean." The staging and lighting on stage were remarkable and innovative. Of course, the orchestrations and lyrics were adapted from its British cousin. Of course, over the years I've collected the various international versions...Hungarian, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, German, Swedish, Japanese, Israeli, Paris cast and the original concept album.
When the opening notes of the score were heard in the film, I felt nostalgia...excitement...joy...and ready to compare former orchestrations. The film, luckily, eschewed the rock opera element and the film flowed more as a traditional opera...orchestration wise. The film's orchestrations are literally sweeping and epic in nature. Tom Hooper, the director, filmed the actors singing live rather than lip syncing.
Hugh Jackman is "Valjean" He is such the versatile actor with a great voice. And he demonstrated physical strength for the role, aside from the vocal strength, especially in the songs where the notes hit the high parts.
Anne Hathaway's "Fantine" is full of a mother in anguish; a mother that will do anything to help her child survive. She lost weight for the role and has her beautiful hair shaved on screen. She turns to prostitution and the song "Lovely Ladies" becomes a dark, grisly and filthy depiction of the street walkers. Her "I Dreamed A Dream" is a tear-provoking anthem to all those dreams that do not become a reality. Again, she sang it live while filming. I think if she had sung it in a recording studio, it would have been embellished and it would have sounded "nice." Come to think of it, it was an angry and bittersweet interpretation.
Russell Crowe as Javert. Hmmm, interesting casting. he has a rough voice, just like what a police inspector with his past would sound like. His interpretation- ruthless; a man with a purpose, as he lives for the law and he wants everyone to live by the law, no matter how cruel the outcomes. I am not a big fan of his vocal capabilities, but he did become the villain of the piece.
Speaking of villains, the "Thenardiers" were brutally interpreted by Helena Bonham-Carter and Sascha Baron Cohen. Intended as comic relief, the Thenardiers are the caretakers of Fantine's daughter, Cosette. Valjean promises Fantine on her deathbed that he will rescue and take care of Cosette; raise her as both mother and father. The Thenardiers are the ultimate con artists and thieves. Literally can pickpocket you without you noticing. Cosette is treated more as a Cinderella whilst their own daughter Eponine is a little princess. "Master of the House" is a tad more graphic than the stage version; film lets you get away with many things visually. It is still a funny scene but not an establishment I would frequent!
Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia) and Eddie Redmayne (My Week With Marilyn) were refreshing and quite innocent in the roles of "Cosette" and "Marius." Love at first sight when they meet that Marius ignores the young woman who is in love with him, Eponine. "Eponine" is portrayed by Samantha Barks. She portrays Eponine with a sadness remembering that she and Cosette were young waifs. How the tables have turned! Her song "On My Own" is gut wrenching, perhaps the best interpretation to date.
Visually it is a beautiful film...this goes for the costumes, the art direction and the computer enhanced visuals. As they say, acting can be difficult, but when an actor must also sing while creating a character! Anne Hathaway, I believe, demonstrated this in her Fantine. Tears were shed during her song.
I had a wonderful weekend and splurged on three movies. The first was The Hunger Games which I thoroughly enjoyed. I am getting into the awful habit of not reading a book upon which a movie is based on. The trilogy is a hit with young readers. The Hunger Games,by Suzanne Collins,is the first of the trilogy.
It is the story of a nation set in a post-apocalyptic era. It was once known as the United States, but it has evolved into 12 districts and one Capitol. Apparently each year for the entertainment of the spoiled citizenry of the Capitol, 24 youngsters (ages 12-18) must fight to the death to remind the nation of the war that led to the new society. The children are picked at an event called "the Reaping." Once chosen, the children are whisked off to the capital and trained for this ritual. The premise seems barbaric...children killing children whilst a beyond spoiled population watches and bets as to who shall be victorious.
The film was directed by Gary Ross and his vision for the film was spectacular. I'd classify the film as a social science fiction film...no aliens, ufos, monsters. The film could have gone the uber violent way, but the violence directed towards the children was easy to watch and not gut wrenching. There is a story to be told and the violent ritual of the Hunger Games comes second. The idea of televising the games is not new. We have reality TV today (even though that is scripted) and that no doubt was in the mind of the author of the novel. The control room in the film could be the place of the future where the director can "script" as the game players try to survive.
The young actors portraying the characters are vibrant, energetic and have a promising career in the entertainment field, notably Jennifer Lawrence (our heroine) Katniss Everdeen and Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mullark. The adults in the cast are seasoned veterans...Donald Sutherland, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harleson, Stanley Tucci and Lenny Kravitz.
The novel, as I understand, is told in the 1st person so for a film adaptation there are going to be changes. Apparently the changes were good ones and the fans approved. The sequel comes out in November 2013. I must read the trilogy before then.
.jpg)
