Meatball And A Movie

Lasagna. "Lost in Paris," 2017, written, directed and starring Fiona Gordon and Dominique Abel. I'll start with the elephant in the room; Tati influences. Abel & Gordon pay homage to Tati in some of the gags, no denying that. But they also draw heavily from Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin. In terms of direction, shooting style, pace, storytelling and editing; no this is not a Tati-esque picture. One of the supplements is a short film by a Variety writer who tries to draw stronger ties between Tati and Able & Gordon. I could make a much stronger argument to the contrary. Okay, let's put that to sleep and move on. This is an entertaining film. Watching Fiona Gordon perform physical comedy, alone, is worth the price of admission. Unfortunately, she is now 65 and I don't think she is going to be able to perform at this physical level for many more years. That's a shame, as there aren't many female actors with her abilities. In addition to its salute t

Lasagna, a three-peat. Also carrot cake with coffee. It's time for a different Italian dish. An Angel at My Table, 1990, directed by Jane Campion, starring Kerry Fox, Alexia Keogh and Karen Fergusson as Janet Frame from childhood to adult. This was the film that made us fans of Jane Campion. I hadn't seen it in many years. It's still a great film. To me. I don't think it's a crowd pleaser.

Lasagna once again. I also had a brownie with coffee. The Postman Always Rings Twice, 1946, directed by Tay Garnett. Harry Ruskin and Niven Busch wrote the screenplay, based on the novel by James Cain. Starring Lana Turner and John Garfield, but Hume Cronyn steals the show with his scenes (opinion). I hadn't seen this one in a while. An okay entry in the noir genre. It could have been better if ... We need the two leads to show us there is heat between them, enough steam to drive them to murder. Lana Turner and John Garfield never raise the temperature that high. There's that first shot of Lana's legs, and it's iconic, and you think she's going to set the house on fire just standing there. Then, nothing. Maybe two other stars could have made this happen. Second thing. MGM, wasn't known for noir. And, true to form, they couldn't resist throwing in some melodrama. Which really breaks the noir spell. Juxtapose that approach with the scene between Bogart and Ast

Lasagna! Something Wild, 1986, directed by Jonthan Demme, starring Melanie Griffith, Jeff Daniels and Ray Liotta. Cameo by John Waters. Music direction by John Cale and Laurie Anderson.  This film is driven by the fantasy of an Audrey "Lulu" Hankel swooping into our lives. Jeff Daniels plays a decent foil to Melanie Griffith. Ray Liotta's "Ray" is formidably menacing. An entertaining character movie , even if it isn't a compelling story.

Chicken parmesan with extra marinara and a piece of warm crusty bread. Carrot cake and coffee for dessert. "Bronson," 2008, directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, starring Tom Hardy. This is a violent and disturbing film, though well done. I chose it because it was mentioned in Blood, Sweat & Chrome as work Hardy had starred in prior to "Fury Road." In this review by Roger Ebert, he concludes some people are just pure evil. I thought about that. The movie doesn't tell us, it avoids conclusions. The storytelling seems to emanate from Bronson's mind, a very sick mind, one supposedly impervious to the psychiatric drugs presently used as cures. That takes me back to Ebert's 'pure evil' label. I believe in science. I think neuroscience is a ways away from helping Bronson. The medicine is under development in some lab somewhere. Not in time for Bronson, but maybe for the next guy. As for the portrayal, I wouldn't recognize Fury Road's Tom Hardy