Tag Archives: movies

The Devil Wants Out of Georgia

11 Saturday May 2019

Posted by in News and Notes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , ,

Friends in Georgia: the immoral, useless, and downright evil slugs of Hellywood want to govern your State. If you won’t let them, they’ll take their marbles and retreat back to Sodom and Gomorrah West.

Hollywood has been outspoken against a controversial Georgia abortion law, and now the heads of three production companies are saying they will not film in the state.

Christine Vachon, chief executive officer of Killer Films; David Simon, creator of “The Wire” and “The Deuce” who heads Blown Deadline Productions; and Mark Duplass of Duplass Brothers Productions have come out in opposition to a newly signed law that would ban abortions in the state if a fetal heartbeat can be detected.

Georgia has been the location for the filming of multiple television shows and blockbuster films, including one of Marvel’s biggest hits, “Black Panther.”

Such films and the production of wildly popular TV series including “The Walking Dead” and “Stranger Things” have resulted in an estimated $2.7 billion pouring into the Southern state from direct spending via 455 productions, the governor’s office announced last year.

Filmmakers J.J. Abrams and Jordan Peele released a joint statement Friday stating they’d stand “shoulder to shoulder with the women of Georgia” as their new show “Lovecraft Country” begins shooting in the state. They promised to donate 100% of their episodic fees to the ACLU of Georiga and Fair Fight Georgia, an election reform organization.

“Governor Kemp’s ‘Fetal Heartbeat’ Abortion Law is an unconstitutional effort to further restrict women and their health providers from making private medical decisions on their terms. Make no mistake, this is an attack aimed squarely and purposely at women,” the joint statement read. “We encourage those who are able to funnel any and all resources to these organizations.”

On Thursday, Vachon, whose company has been behind such films as “Carol” and “Vox Lux,” made her stand known on Twitter.

“Killer Films will no longer consider Georgia as a viable shooting location until this ridiculous law is overturned,” she said.

Of course, “Killer” Films wants to keep killing Georgia babies. To hell with them. Really, who in his right mind cares what these savages say about anything. Let them go. Hell, they should have – yeah, yeah, I know the GA GOP is money hungry – added that to the law: “…and all television and movie production companies are henceforth barred from the State…”

Join me in permanently boycotting everything that appears on the larger and smaller screens – unless it comes from a verified Christian source. There’s a reason that the actor set has been scorned by the civilized, as a bunch of idiots and degenerates, for millennia.

And, Cut!

Passengers: A Review of Sorts

15 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by in Other Columns

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , ,

Putting aside the weightier matters for the evening, I thought I would reminisce about a recent evening at the theater. As it happened, the honor fell to me to escort my daughter and several of her friends to see a movie. The movie was Passengers.

Most of the films I see are with and for my daughter. Any time with her is quality time. But every once in a while I get surprised and independently enjoy the show itself. Actually, I’ll admit she has pretty good tastes. You’ll recall my happy viewing last year of Zootopia.

Anyhow we all went over to the big, nice mall, home to the big, nice AMC theater. It’s the big, nice mall down the street from the even bigger, nicer mall (more on that one at a later date). Arriving early allowed for malling around for about two hours. That, for me, consisted of repeatedly moving from one promenade bench to another. I heard much about “Instagram”…

It was a 7:30ish showtime for Passengers. I love my daughter and I think her friends are swell but I fully expected to nap through this one. I obligatorily sat several seats away. That’s what the cool dad’s do: it gives space but allows for vigilance. It also affords a nap if necessary. In this case, it was not.

I actually liked this movie.

Set in the indeterminate but not-too-distant future, the movie finds the lovely Jennifer Lawrence, some guy I don’t know, and about 5,000 other passengers asleep on a 120-year voyage to a new planet.

As you may have heard elsewhere, the plot revolves around Lawrence and that guy waking up too early. Way too early. I’m not going to give away the whys and hows but they end up with 90 years on their hands. Luckily they’re on a pretty cool luxury ship where everything is automated.

zg0270_v0270-1099

Sony Pictures.

She’s a bit more … realistic than say a vessel from Star Wars or Star Trek. One gets the impression this thing might really fly in the not-too-distant but indeterminate future. Power comes from fusion, routed to an ion drive. Technically, possible stuff. It also features a ritzy bar manned by a British robot.

wall-coverings-in-passengers-spaceship-bar-feature

Sony.

It’s part love story and part science fiction thriller. As for the first part: what would you do, stranded on a huge spaceship for 90 years with Jennifer Lawrence? Yep. The thriller bit is a little more complicated. The whole thing is complicated really. Though I thought it was all well inter-woven.

The ship has some major issues. And our heroes, being the only people awake, have to deal with them. A member of the crew also comes to for a short period but isn’t a major character – critically important, it seems, but he dies due to the overall deteriorating condition of the ship.

There’s a bit of an ethical dilemma as well. Initially it seems downright criminal in nature. However, as seen by the end of the story, it turns out poetically fated to have happened and is the one thing that prevents catastrophe.

After many twists and turns, Lawrence and the dude wind up with an unexpected but creatively happy ending.

So it is that I recommend this movie: part reverse-Titanic in space, part reverse-Rip Van Winkle (also in space), and part … some other space-based romance action stuff. There’s even a little comedy thrown in too. I think you’ll like it. I suppose it would make an ideal date movie. Also a good movie for the middle school girls in your life. Then again, it was even a good movie for a curmudgeonly chaperon.

Jennifer Lawrence is hot.

You’re welcome.

Zootopia:A Movie Fit For A Prince

02 Saturday Jul 2016

Posted by in Other Columns

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Most movies do not appeal to me. I generally take in the theater at the suggestion of and in the company of my daughter. Before I get into this column let me review the movies I’ve seen lately.

Captain America: Civil War. Rated, by me: B. It was okay as both a superhero movie and as libertarian commentary about obeying your conscious rather than rote orders. Okay it was.

Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice. B-. Not bad but not what I’d (we’d) hoped for. Batfleck was awesome! Henry plays a good Supes. Wonder Woman was stunning – the 3 minutes we got of her. There was way too much filler.

The Hobbit: Part Whatever. F. The ghost of Tolkien is looking for Peter Jackson right now like a Nazgul on a ring thief.

Star Wars, Episode Too Many, A New New Hope. C. A PC remake of the original with a wimpy Darth Vader and a bigger Death Star.

Then, just the other day, I ventured into Zootopia. Every once in a while the Disney machine gets one right. I actually enjoyed it! A! It’s no wonder Rotten Tomatoes rated it 98% fresh. Fresh carrots, here, I suppose. Like Star Wars it reminded me of something – not another, older movie about a mammalian metropolis – I recalled a book about political theory.

Disney.

The animation, acting (voice acting) and the flow were all top-notch. The plot was well-developed and unfolded with a suspenseful, surprising rhythm.

Judy Hopps is a small-town bunny with big dreams of becoming a police officer in the big city. She defies the odds and makes the force – the very first rabbit officer. Starting day one she learns all kinds of lessons. She quickly develops her street smarts and cracks the big case.

The city population is roughly 90% herbivores and 10% carnivores. Lately, about a dozen of the carnivores have gone missing. Judy’s sleuthing, aided by a crafty street fox, leads her to their location and a major surprise.

All of the citizens of Zootopia have gotten along fine since forever but there is a lingering , maybe unspoken fear the meat-eaters might, just might go wild. They do. It turns out the missing predators have all mysteriously started acting like wild, violent animals; they go primal. The mayor, a politician’s politician of a lion, realizes what may be happening and has them locked away in a research facility on the outskirts of town.

He and his co-conspirators are arrested. Judy is a hero. But … there is still the problem of the wilding predators. Is it the start of an epidemic? Fear begins to take hold in the city. In the end there is a rational, if uncanny explanation for the savage behavior – the predators have been unwittingly poisoned.

The case is solved. The poison victims are cured. Everyone lives happily ever after and learns important (yes, PC) lessons about inclusion, not jumping to conclusions, and the civilized necessity of overlooking illogical prejudices. Judy’s street fox friend becomes the force’s first fox officer and they end the movies as partners. In and of itself, that would make for a happy ending to a great movie with some pretty decent morals. It’s not just a cutesy animal movie. It features significant societal commentary.

Here’s my special social commentary, all derived from the manner in which the poisoning of the predators was revealed. What was that political book I was reminded of? It was The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli.

Mayor Lionheart’s deputy was an over-worked, under-appreciated sheep. She masterminded the whole predator poisoning, banking on the mayor’s secretive, illegal handling of the matter. It almost paid off for her. She assumed the role of mayor just in time to feed on the city’s (false) fears of a savagery outbreak. The whole missing and drugged carnivore scheme was a false flag event. It was the same kind of deceptive power-play described time and again in The Prince.

Disney.

Given the politically correct undertones of the movie (to me, harmless), one may safely describe the deputy mayor as a “social justice warrior” (SJW) of the lowest kind. She carefully crafted the false flag and manipulated the people in order to gain power – Machiavellian! I even saw Vox Day’s three rules of SJW behavior in action: the story about the predators was a lie; they (Mayor Sheepy and her accomplices) doubled down to save face and hold onto power at nearly any cost, and; they tried to project their insecurity onto Judy.

So, in the very end, Judy ended up cracking an even bigger case, a case of treason. The ultimate moral of the tale is to not trust the government even if you’re a part of it – especially if you are a decent civil servant like Judy.

 

“It’s called a hustle, sweetheart.” – Judy Hopps, Zootopia.

“Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception.” – Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince.

One more thing – two more things…. Disney did the latent comedic elements flawlessly. They featured an overweight, donut-grazing, goofball tiger of a desk sergeant at police HQ. Classic. And, in Zootopia the DMV office is run by … sloths. Perfect! Old Walt would own this one.

Disney.