Winter 2014!

Winter is becoming very tiresome. Two hour commutes (each way), sub-zero temperatures, tons of snow- and it’s only the end of January. Five minutes before I took this photo this morning the sky was perfectly clear and the sun was out.

 

You could not see twenty feet in any direction.

…how many days until Spring?

Jim Beam Sale

I’m no big flag waver but some things are so steeped in American tradition that they should be kept off limits. Kentucky bourbon is one of them. That’s why I find the sale of Jim Beam to Suntory of Japan disturbing. Suntory? What’s the first thing that comes to people’s minds when the hear the word Suntory? Bill Murray doing the Suntory commercial in Lost In Translation (“…make it Suntory time”) including the manic Japanese director, pronouncing ‘Suntory time’ like a Samuri on speed.

Suntory is a good company with good products. A long time a go I spent several months in Japan and drank Suntory beer and it was great. But that was beer, and that was Japan, not the ancient Bourbon County, Kentucky. It was surprising to see how much Jim Beam is worth to Suntory– 13.8 billion dollars. Money talks.

A few years ago I used to travel frequently to Nashville, passing through Kentucky near the old distilleries. It’s a unique, wild and timeless.

I read a quote where someone said, “Jim Beam must remain the ‘quintessential American brand’”. Guess what? That changed 180 degrees in a blink of an eye and a stroke of a pen.

As a writer I consume a reasonable amount of whiskey. It goes with the trade, but I’ll be making a few changes. Goodbye Jim Beam, hello to the old standard, Elmer T. Lee.

 

Goodreads Giveaway

A giveaway is running on Goodreads for The System – A Detroit Story. Five paperbacks will be given away which retail for $8.17 on Amazon.com. The giveaway runs until February 11th. All you have to do is click the giveaway button on the side of this page or go here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13611266-the-system—a-detroit-story–

The Wall (Die Wand)

The Wall (Die Wand) is a German film about a woman (played by Martina Gedeck) who goes to a hunting lodge with friends and winds up alone, trapped in the mountains by an invisible wall. Sure, you’re thinking, just like Under the Dome. Well, it isn’t. The Wall is a visually stunning movie about the unnamed woman who slowly accepts her situation and eventually harmonizes and integrates with nature.

Every scene in this film is well thought out and incredibly well shot. Based on the novel by Marlen Haushofer, The Wall was written for the screen and directed by Julain Polsler.

The woman spreads out from the hunting lodge, looking for a means to escape and tried to locate other people. She sees a few, in particular an elderly couple that live in a simple cabin, but they appear to be frozen in time.  They and others cannot see her.

Her steady companion is a dog named Lynx. If you like dogs (like I do), this movie also explores the deep, unique and complex relationship between canines and humans.

This is not a plot-driven movie and non-formula to a huge extent. The Wall revolves around overcoming loneliness, self-acceptance, self-reliance and the grit and determination it takes to survive living off the land. Don’t expect a big climax in the third act (if you can tell when it begins- I can’t).  I watched The Wall on Netflix.

You can check out more here: http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-wall-2013

and here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1745686/

The Wall is a movie I look forward to watching again.

Grade: A

 

Tough Weather!

It’s been really nasty here in Michigan the last few days. We’ve been hit with tons of snow followed by a dangerous cold snap that’s been characterized as an “Arctic vortex“. If there’s an upside, it looks kind of cool. Here’s s shot taken this morning out a window:

Here’s a couple taken in the back yard.

If you’re engulfed by the Arctic vortex, stay warm!

 

 

 

Starlet

Came across a really, really good movie while scanning through Netfix earlier this week- Starlet. It’s worth watching for the sensitivity and subtlety of the acting, cinematography and story.

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Starlet is about a 21 year old adult film actress, Jane, who goes to yard sales to find items to decorate her room. Jane buys a thermos to use as a vase from 83 year old Sadie for five dollars. Once she’s home Jane finds rolls of hundred dollar bills stuffed in the thermos. She goes back to give the woman back the thermos (and money) but is cut short by “NO REFUNDS”. Sadie slams the door on her. It turns out that Sadie’s deceased husband was a professional gambler.

Jane becomes obsessed with starting a relationship with Sadie and the story moves along from there. All in all to me this is a story about the onion skin layers of relationships. The film depicts mundane daily life in the San Fernando Valley and provides a brief glimpse into the mechanical, indifferent, soulless porn industry.

Starlet is Jane’s pet chihuahua and the namesake of the film. Through all of the rocky relationships in the film, Starlet is always present and is a catalyst to move the story forward.

Starlet was written Sean S. Baker and Chris Bergoch, and was directed by Baker.

Dree Hemingway plays Jane and carries the movie singlehandedly. Hemingway is Mariel Hemingway’s daughter and the great granddaughter of Ernest Hemingway. This is Hemingway’s screen debut and she is literally stunning in her performance.
Starlet was first shown at SXSW in March 2012 and won the Special Jury Prize, Young Americans Selection from AFI Fest and Dree Hemingway was the winner of Variety’s Actor to Watch in 2012.
If you run across Starlet take the time to watch it. There’s a short, very explicit adult scene so be warned if that puts you off.

Here’s a link to the movie page: http://www.musicboxfilms.com/starlet-movies-44.php

Grade: A