The Reviewer Delves into The American Future

Looking for a thought provoking documentary on American history that is more unconventional in scope, than check out Simon Schama: The American Future.
British/American historian Simon Schama (who gave us the magnificent History of Britain) presents an intriguing look at where America is today and its possible direction by conjuring up its past, all through the backdrop of the historic 2008 presidential campaign. This, in all honesty, more left leaning look at American history is broken up into 4 segments that cover;
1)American Plenty: which covers the scarcity of precious resources as seen through the drought that has effected the water level of the Colorado River as well as how precious water is becoming. It was troubling to see the diminishing Colorado and what could become bleak times for the Southwest.
2) American War: One of the better segments of the series that focuses on the Civil War, Spanish American War while touching on WWII, Vietnam and the current Iraq War and how with Mark Twain, the anti-war movement was born and still flourishes today. I particularly liked how Schama essentially breaks Americans into 2 camps when it comes to war politics by singling out 2 of our Founding Fathers...Thomas Jefferson (who was against a professional army and Alexander Hamilton (who was all for it).
3) American Fervour: depicting the role of religion in America's history from the emancipation of slaves to Civil Rights, to conservative evangelical Christians. It was powerful but also disturbing to go over Jefferson's words of freedom and religion but to also hear of the slaves he kept that were denied those same freedoms Equally troubling but also uplifting is hearing the stories of little known Civil Rights activist Fanny Lou Hamer and her struggles and how religion was a great comfort to her, in her darkest times.
4) What is an American? This was to me the best segment which covers the bitterness certain Americans feel over immigration, primarily focusing on Mexican and Chinese immigrants and their trials and tribulations. It is hard not to feel effected by seeing the history of the hatred towards the Chinese and how Mexicans have been viewed since we annexed Texas. I was uplifted by the story of Grace Abbott, a woman ahead of her time who did so much to bolster immigration reform. However, the fact that Schama failed to mention that all immigrants have always been looked on with disdain when they first arrive disappointed me.

That is not to say this is a bash America only documentary. There are wonderful segments of average Americans and especially seeing the 2008 election virtually recreated and how Americans were moved to vote in droves was a wonderful reminder of how great this country is. I especially enjoyed a tribute to a Latino American veteran of WWII. However, if you are looking for a pure flag waving-America has never done anything wrong-historical documentary this will not be for you. However, if you can be objective, by tapping into what is great about America as well as the dark deeds of our past, Simon Schama, (albeit in an abbreviated way and not showing enough of other good things that Americans have done in our history) provides an unemotional, sobering look at where we have been and where we are going as a nation. In the words of Grace Abbott on what it means to be an American: "We are many nationalities -- we should not be ashamed of this ; if all races can live together we can meet the true American opportunity." I give the American Future 4 out of 5 stars and is currently available on DVD.

The Reviewer Checks Out The Ugly Duckling

A charming little short play that features the strong performance of Richard Scott as Prince Simon. The production is very fast paced, a little too fast as most of the time the actors are too concerned with speaking their lines too quickly instead of waiting for a reaction from their partners. Mr. Scott and Elena Duarte as Princess Camilla are the exception and main attraction in the play. They both listen and respond to each other very well and seemed to have a genuine connection. Mr. Scott has a strong stage presence but a warm sentimentality that is endearing. His entrance is also hilarious and to me is reminiscent of fine vaudevillian comedies of the past. My only critique of Mr. Scott is to come across more strongly as a prince, because it was hard to tell how he felt about that.
Miss Duarte is certainly comfortable onstage and has a sweet quality to her that is hard not to like. The rest of the cast as I mentioned before seemed too rushed as if they had a specific time limit in which to say their lines. It's a shame it is only a one act, as I would've liked to have seen how the story played itself out. Overall, this was fun and if you have 30 minutes to spare, come check it out in it's final performance tonight.

The Reviewer Checks Out Frost/Nixon

A fine rendition of the play of the same name. Michael Sheen and Frank Langella reprise their roles from the play as David Frost and Richard Nixon in a story about one of the most famous political interviews in the history of television where a struggling English talk show host, David Frost scores an interview with then former President Nixon and gets him to admit wrongdoing in the Watergate scandal. At times it has the typical cliched feeling of the underdog-going-up-against-the-champion type story but it was entertaining. However, I felt like Mr. Howard was using Nixon as a metaphor for President Bush and wanting to put Bush in the hot seat for all of his wrongdoings as President, with himself as Frost. The portrayal of Nixon was fairly pathetic, but then again, there is no version that of him that is flattering, especially Anthony Hopkins version in Oliver Stone's "Nixon." What was interesting is how much of a money grubber Nixon is shown to be, ie; always wanting more money for doing the interviews. Not to mention being delusional, as in not recalling a drunken phone call to Frost a few nights before their final interview.

Parts of the film are a little slow and oftentimes too grandiose for a story of this kind. But the climax is a huge payoff and Langella does an incredible job of portraying the desolation, the anguish and loneliness of Nixon. However, I liked his nonverbal emotions to his vocal inflections better. Sheen does a admirable job as the partying playboy Frost. You can see how he feels about his difficult circumstance and how everything he had was literally on the line with the success of this interview. The supporting cast led by Kevin Bacon, who goes back to his cold loyalist part he played similar to A Few Good Men as Nixon's chief of staff Jack Brennan. It works for Kevin and he is good at it. Oliver Platt also plays his typical sardonic, caustic witted type character as Bob Zelnick. Sam Rockwell plays the whiny, revenge filled James Weston who wants nothing more than to make Nixon pay. Rebecca Hall plays Caroline Cushing, in a not much to do part except smile, look pretty and be strong for her man, role. However, she conveys good compassion when called on. At the helm, Ron Howard, who's direction seems a bit rushed and distracted at times, especially when he is showing who David Frost is. I didn't have a strong feeling for Frost one way or another but it was a good attempt. I give Frost/Nixon 3.5 stars and is currently out on blu-ray and dvd.

The Reviewer Revels in "Wishful Drinking"

I have decided to make a brief departure from films to quickly review Carrie Fisher's one woman show...Wishful Drinking which is being performed at the Seattle Repertory Theater until May 9. It is a riot. I loved it. Carrie is hilarious and her life is the epitome of tragicomedy but don't let that fool you. She brings delicious, biting satire to every anecdote, accompanied by simple visual aids. In her show, Miss Fisher covers topics ranging from: a Q & A with the audience about finding her good friend dead in her bed. Someone asked..."Did he smell?" She thought it was weird but she seemed to love it. She also discussed her childhood and what it was like growing up as the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher. From there that led to a family tree tracing the elements of Hollywood Incest. She also discussed being in a nightclub act with her mother as a teenager and studying acting in London. Of course, the 1st act culminates with her discussing the role that made her famous (or infamous depending on how you look at it) Princess Leia in Star Wars and as she mentions. "Why else would you any of you be here unless you saw Star Wars?" She describes the traumas of what the role has brought to her, from being an action figure to an 8 foot tall sex toy made of concrete. But, the funniest was showing off an embarrassingly revealing figurine of her in the gold bikini. I'll just say "galaxy snatch" and you imagine the rest.

The 2nd act is more poignant and darker, but no less funny, as Miss Fisher describes being an addict and suffering from Bi-Polar Disorder. As with everything, her rapier wit and hilarious metaphors make one feel less sorry for her, but with no less compassion. She has a hard, complex life but she doesn't want your pity. Listening to her describe her life situations sounds at times like the theater of the absurd but as she put it, "just imagine the stories I haven't told you."

It has been awhile since I went to the theater and was inspired and continued to smile long after the show ended. I could see it again. And so, I urge all of you dear readers to see it as well. Run...do not walk. You will not regret it. I give Wishful Drinking 5 stars.

The Reviewer Becomes a "Slumdog Millionaire"

Slumdog is a good film overall, but I did not understand the massive hype surrounding it. It is not one of my favorite films from 2008. However, in terms of all the Oscar nominees it was the Best Picture of that group.
The film centers around Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) who is accused of cheating while being a contestant on the Indian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. He is sent to police headquarters where he is subsequently tortured into revealing who helped him and why (apparently in India, you are treated like a terrorist for cheating on game shows). This leads to Jamal regaling his captors with stories from his past that coincide with each question that he answered correctly. As a child, Jamal befriends a beautiful girl Latika (Frieda Pinto) and he falls in love. However, his brother Salim, who doesn't hesitate to betray Jamal at every turn keeps ruining his chances with Latika and makes her vanish from his life. But Jamal vows to find her and save her. One of the main reasons he becomes a contestant on the show, so he hopes she will be watching. The film culminates with Jamal being released from police custody to go and try to answer the final question for 20 million rupees, where in an attempt to phone a friend, gets the surprise of his life.

There are some aspects of the film that are cliched and confusing to me. My favorite parts of the film were the sequences of the main characters as children and the horrific things they have to endure to get by on the streets of Mumbai. Danny Boyle is an exceptional director and once again he does a good job with the source material. The acting was decent as most of the child actors I believe have never been actors before, so they did a pretty good job. It is worth seeing but again, I don't think it was earth shattering.
I give Slumdog 3 stars

The Reviewer Lifts "Seven Pounds"

Seven Pounds is a disappointment. It tries too hard to be emotionally poignant and it just feels manipulative. The film is centered around Ben Thomas (Will Smith) who seemingly has it all. A great career, a beautiful wife, and a lovely beach house. However, tragedy strikes in the form of a horrific car accident that he caused (a good lesson in not to text and drive) that takes the life of 7 people, including his wife and leaves him a shell of his former self. So, he seeks to atone for his sins and doesn't feel he deserves to live. He goes to quite the extremes to make amends by becoming a samaritan to only deserving people who truly need his help. The climax is ludicrous. I totally didn't believe that even Mr. Smith (who is becoming an exceptional actor) even believed the plausibility of his character. He looked like he was trying too hard. It takes a while to get going and it is incoherent at times. I am glad I didn't waste $10 on this film. I did think Rosario Dawson who plays does a decent job as a woman with congenital heart disease who desperately tries to connect with her samaritan. But even her story line felt contrived and the love interest forced. Gabriele Muccino is responsible for this mess, which is a shame because he did such a wonderful job with Will in Pursuit of Happyness. However, this time, he created a farce that wants to be much more than it truly is.
I give Seven Pounds 2 out of 5 stars.