Friday, December 27, 2019

Rosy the Reviewer's Best and Worst Films of 2019

Well, another year of movies have come and gone, and I wanted to share with you my favorites and those I hated.  

I know hate is a strong word, but as my life gets shorter I get crabbier and crabbier when I spend two hours watching crap. As for what is considered "best," I know that's a very subjective thing so I actually prefer to say this list actually represents my favorites for the year.

So here is a handy list of my top ten favorite films of 2019, and a synopsis of what I said in my original review, with a few comments in hindsight (not in any particular order because I loved them all - click on the link for my original full review):


***My Favorite Films of 2019***


1. Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood
(reviewed August 2, 2019)




Once upon a time...there was an actor and his stunt double whose careers were on the way down and whose lives intersected with some murderous history in the Hollywood of the late 1960's.

It's about the Manson Murders... but it's not. It's typical Tarrantino... but it's not.  All I can say, it has one of the most cathartic endings of any movie I have ever seen...and it's downright entertaining as well.  Do not miss this film! 


Rosy the Reviewer said...ring, ring, Mr. Di Caprio?  Oscar calling. We have a Best Actor nomination for you. Ring, ring, Mr. Pitt?  People Magazine calling.  We wanted to let you know that you are still the Sexiest Man Alive!




2.  A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
(reviewed November 29, 2019)



A film that shows Mr. Rogers wasn't just for kids.

This is not your usual biopic (if you are looking for a biopic on Mr. Rogers, see "Won't You Be My Neighbor") and, surprisingly, Tom Hanks as Mr. Rogers actually has more of a supporting role, because the film focuses on a cynical, unhappy journalist and how Mr. Rogers helped him. But Hanks still has incredible impact, and after seeing this film, you will realize he has helped you too!

Rosy the Reviewer said...this film is a must see!  You will leave the theatre wanting to be a better person. And you should. We all should. Oh, by the way, ring, ring!  Mr. Hanks?  Oscar calling!





3. Judy
(reviewed October 4, 2019)




A depiction of the last year of Judy Garland's life.

In the winter of 1968, Garland was alone and lonely having just divorced her fourth husband.  She was also broke and unable to pay her hotel bills or care for her young children, and her abuse of alcohol and drugs had made her an insomniac and a liability to the film industry.  So when she was offered some nightclub dates in London, she reluctantly agreed to take them on despite the fact that she was in such a fragile state it was unclear whether or not she would be able to perform.  
The film follows Garland as she tries to meet her performance obligations while at the same time struggling with sleep and addiction issues.

A bravura performance by Renee Zellweger.


Rosy the Reviewer said...ring! ring! Ms. Zellweger, Oscar calling.  We have your statue all ready to go!




4.  Toy Story 4
(reviewed July 17, 2019)



The fourth installment in the "Toy Story" franchise.

Well, if you have been reading my reviews for any length of time, you know I hate sequels.  And after "Toy Story 3," was there really anything more that needed to be said?

The answer is yes! I can't believe I am saying this, but even though this film is a sequel, I loved it! 

Rosy the Reviewer said...so the answer to my question, "Did we need yet another one?"  Maybe not, but I'm glad we have this one.  It's a joy to spend time with these characters. Just wish I had had a kid sitting next to me to enjoy it with!




5. Blinded by the Light
(reviewed August 23, 2019)


Javed, a shy working-class Pakistani boy who endures the racism and seeming dead-end life ahead of him in Margaret Thatcher's 1987 England, is transformed when he discovers Bruce Springsteen. 

Based on a true story, you don't have to be a Bruce Springsteen fan to enjoy this film. It has everything I love in a movie:



  • Engaging actors
  • A delightful story
  • Wonderful music
  • A message
  • Innovation (lyrics swirl around the screen and a fantasy wind storm erupts to illustrate Javed's inner world as he discovers Bruce)
  • Layers of meaning

You could see this film many times and every time find something new to love.


Rosy the Reviewer said...young or old, you will enjoy this movie - it will make you glad you are alive! And don't miss the end credits where you can meet "the real Javed" and his family.





6. Rocketman
(reviewed June 7, 2019)




The rise to fame of the incomparable Elton John.

This was the year for films about music and performers, which is not surprising after "Bohemian Rhapsody" hit it big last year.  Written by Lee Hall, I might be causing controversy here, but I liked this film more than I liked "Bohemian Rhapsody."  In fact, I loved this film.  It is a poignant, raw story of a guy whose life started out rough and who overcame his problems to find a happy ending. And then there are all of those wonderful Elton John/Bernie Taupin songs.

Rosy the Reviewer said...I liked this one better than "Bohemian Rhapsody."  Even with the fantasy sequences, it seemed more real while at the same time magical.




7. Yesterday
(reviewer July 5, 2019) 




Struggling singer/songwriter Jack Malik (Himesh Patel) gets hit by a truck and when he wakes up, he discovers he is in an alternate universe -- where the Beatles never existed!

What would the world have been like without the Beatles?  Almost impossible for me to contemplate.


This is yet another movie where a knock on the head puts our hero or heroine into an alternate reality and we must suspend our disbelief ("I feel Pretty," "Isn't it Romantic," "What Men Want," "Overboard" - and these are just the ones produced within the last couple of years!) Starting to be a sort of cliche?  Yes, but boy did I love this movie!  I didn't mind suspending my disbelief for this one, one bit!


Rosy the Reviewer said...even if you are not a big Beatles fan, you will become one. This charming film will captivate you.  I promise.





8. Knives Out
(reviewer December 6, 2019)



Best-selling mystery writer, Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), is found dead in his study, with his throat slit.  Was it suicide....or MURDER?

A star-studded cast graces this Agatha Christie-like murder mystery with Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, a modern day Poirot.


Written and directed by Rian Johnson, this film is a modern take on Agatha Christie without losing any of her dramatic tropes that always kept us guessing.  And the film even makes some statements about class and politics.  But mostly, this film is a lot of fun.


We can always count of Christopher Plummer to bring it and he does and the rest of the cast create a nice ensemble.  And can I say, damn?!  Chris Evans is one handsome guy and there is not one trace of his Captain America persona in his portrayal of the evil Ransom.  But the film really belongs to Daniel Craig as Benoit and Ana de Armas as Marta.  Craig is having a lot of fun playing against type.  There is not a stitch of Mr. Bond in evidence.  Instead, his southern accent is so drawling that he would make Jeff Sessions proud. Benoit teams up with Marta, Harlan's young nurse, because she cannot tell a lie.  If she does, she throws up.  So Blanc enlists her to help him find the truth about Harlan's death. And speaking of which, this is one time I did not figure out the ending or the who dunnit part.

Rosy the Reviewer said...this is one entertaining film.  Highly recommended!



9.  The Irishman
(reviewed December 13, 2019)


A mob hitman reflects on his life and his involvement with Union Leader Jimmy Hoffa.

Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci, all together in a mob film directed by Martin Scorsese.  How can you go wrong? You can't.  And though this film is about the mob, this is not just a mob film.  It's an attempt to figure out what really happened to Jimmy Hoffa, who mysteriously disappeared 44 years ago. But more importantly, the film is three-and-a-half hours of incredible acting and filmmaking, highlighting a time in American history when people and organizations like Jimmy Hoffa, the unions and the mob wielded huge amounts of power that could affect not only American politics but events around the world.  And parallels can certainly be drawn to what is happening today.

Rosy the Reviewer said...an extraordinary achievement and a worthy addition to Scorsese's impressive body of work that includes some of my all-time favorite films. At 77, Scorsese's still got it!






10.  Marriage Story
(reviewed December 20,2019)


A poignant story about a marriage breaking up.

What could be just another divorce movie is made special by the reality of the characters, scenes and dialogue that writer/director Noah Baumbach so expertly marries (pardon the pun). When we marry, we have a list of things we love about our spouses, we have hope for the future, but sometimes love and hope aren't enough. We are all human with our individual needs and desires and, yes, selfishness. Life sometimes gets in the way of all of those things we love and hope for and what was once a loving, respectful relationship gets broken down and becomes a hotbed of resentment and disillusionment. Then when divorce rears its ugly head, we forget that list of things we loved and we do things we never thought we would do.  It's complicated and there are no bad guys.  Just two people who grow apart and want different things.


And Baumbach captures all of that and more with the help of stunning performances by Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver.

Rosy the Reviewer said..Ring!  Ring!  Oscar calling!

(Available right now on Netflix!  We love you Netflix!)


Addendum:




63 Up


I knew this would happen.  I had already chosen my Top 10 and then realized that this film had just been released, a documentary series that in my opinion is the greatest of all time. I had to see the latest one. And after seeing it, I had to add it to my favorites list. Director Richard Linklater received many kudos for filming "Boyhood," where he followed a young boy from age 6 to age 18.  Well, folks, director Michael Apted has been following fourteen British children since they were seven in his "Up" series where every seven years he checks in to see how they are doing.  The entire series is a must see, but if you haven't seen the earlier films, he expertly brings you up to date in each installment. And this latest one is no exception. 

The series began in 1964 and continued every seven years since then.  It is just an amazing and fascinating feat of filmmaking.  Now those "children" who have survived and/or continued to participate are 63. The series began with the premise “Give me a child until he is 7 and I will show you the man."  Has that proven to be the case?


Rosy the Reviewer says...
this is the best and most ambitious documentary every produced and must be on my list for 2019.  Full review next Friday.




And now from the sublime to the ridiculously horrible...



***The Worst Movies of 2019***



Certainly there were more than these five films that were bad in 2019, but keep in mind that my goal in life is to NOT see bad films.  But sometimes I am lured in by previews that make a movie look good or the film deals with a subject matter I am interested in but then I get to to the theatre or sit down on my couch with my glass of wine only to discover the preview contained all of the best bits or the subject matter had been ultimately ruined by a bad script or misguided director. Lots of reasons lead me to a film, never realizing I am sending myself to a couple of hours of hell. And since I don't want to dwell on my mistakes, this is a short list. 

I have just included the very worst of the worst.




1. Drunk Parents
(reviewed December 13, 2019)
Two parents try to hide their financial situation from their daughter and their neighbors and they are not helped by the fact that they are drunk all of the time.

Frank (Alec Baldwin) and Nancy (Salma Hayek) Teagarden have just dropped their daughter off at school only to return home to find their car being repossessed.  You see, Frank and Nancy have financial problems.  They also each have a drinking problem which doesn't help them make good decisions.  For example, they are watching their neighbor's house while he is in London and decide that it's a good idea to put an ad in Craig's list and rent it out for some extra money.  And who should rent it from them?  Why, Carl, a sex offender (Jim Gaffigan).  Drunk people funny?  Sex offenders, funny?  Nope. The only reason I kept watching was to see if there was a reason to keep watching.


Rosy the Reviewer said...I watched this film much as I would a train wreck, horrified but wondering just how much worse it could get.  And it did.





2. The Hustle
(reviewed November 8, 2019)


The female version of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels."

"Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" was funny and memorable. This one wasn't. I loved "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels." I not only didn't love this one, I loathed it.  If I see Rebel Wilson fall down and slide across the floor, I am going to throw myself across the floor.

Directed by Chris Addison, this is almost a complete replica of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," except with women...but sadly this version is neither funny nor memorable. One could make the case that the film tries to make a statement about women who are getting back at men for being treated so poorly by them, but it doesn't really work nor did I care enough to give this film that much thought.


Rosy the Reviewer said...if you are in the mood for a funny movie about con artists, watch the original "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels."



3.  Dumbo
(reviewed April 19, 2019)


One of Disney's live action remakes of those classic animated films we all loved. This time it's "Dumbo," and I wish they had left this one alone!

The original "Dumbo" was basically the story of a darling little elephant born with oversized ears, his mother loving and protecting him, his finding his "wings" as it were, and all of that capped off with lots of musical numbers.  

But instead of reprising the original story, Disney decided they needed to create an entirely new plot and, worst of all, they didn't highlight the most important, three-hanky scene in "Dumbo," when little Dumbo goes to visit his mother who has been imprisoned and she sings "Baby Mine," while cradling Dumbo in her trunk.  Okay, give me a minute....


Let's just say, if you loved the original, nothing in this remake will remind you of it.


Rosy the Reviewer said..a disappointment.  See the original.



4.  Poms
(reviewed May 17, 2019)


A dying woman moves from New York City to a retirement community in Georgia and finds a reason to live when she forms a geriatric cheerleading group.

I know I should be on the side of this film because, this is aimed at my demographic and it meant well (I think). I really do want to see shows like this. For example, I love "Grace and Frankie." But I am not going to give this film props just because it's about older ladies and meant well. A film needs to be some kind of worthwhile experience such as funny or uplifting or cathartic.  None of those apply here.  

There was fodder here to really camp things up or at least be funny.  Sometimes movies can be so bad they are good but even that wasn't the case here.  It was just bad. 

Rosy the Reviewer said...terrible.


5. Cats 


The long-running Broadway show finally comes to the screen.

And nobody seems to care. I actually must confess, I haven't seen this and probably won't, but I can tell it is really bad just from the previews, so it makes my list.  Didn't like the Broadway show, the previews for this looked egregious, and the critics have been catty - "...like a descent into madness" and "Yes, Cats is as bad as it looks" -  so I don't need to see it.  I'm jumping on the bandwagon and putting it on my worst list. Besides, though I love James Corden and Judy Dench, I think seeing them in catsuits would make me want to spit up a hairball.

Rosy the Reviewer says...I never was a cat lover.



Thanks for reading!




See you next Friday



for 



"63 Up"





and



The Week in Reviews
(What To See and What To Avoid)

as well as


the latest on

"My 1001 Movies I Must See

Before I Die Project"

And by the way,

Happy New Year! 





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Check your local library for DVDs and books mentioned.

Next time you are wondering whether or not to watch a particular film, check out my reviews on IMDB (The International Movie Database).



Go to IMDB.com, find the movie you are interested in.  Scroll down below the synopsis and the listings for the director, writer and main stars to where it says "Reviews" and click on "Critics" - If I have reviewed that film, you will find Rosy the Reviewer alphabetically on the list.




Friday, December 20, 2019

"Marriage Story" and The Week in Reviews

[I review "Marriage Story" as well as the DVDs "Stan and Ollie" and "Pick of the Litter."  The Book of the Week is "The Unqualified Hostess" by Whoopi Goldberg.  I also bring you up-to-date with "My 1001 Movies I Must See Before I Die Project" with "A Tale of the Wind"]




Marriage Story


A poignant story about a marriage breaking up.

Writer/director Noah Baumbach has made a name for himself with his smart and insightful comedy/dramas, most notably "The Squid and the Whale," "Margot at the Wedding," and his films starring Greta Gerwig ("Frances Ha," "Mistress America"), who was his dramatic muse and is his partner in real life who has now gone off to direct her own films. In fact, they could possibly be in contention for a Best Director Academy Award this year, her for "Little Women," and him for this wonderful story of how a once seemingly great marriage went so very wrong.

Starring Scarlett Johannson and Adam Driver as Nicole and Charlie Barber, the film begins with both of them in therapy, making a list of everything they had loved about each other. We hear those lists in voice over.  However, in the session, Nicole refuses to read hers to Charlie and the therapist and they decide to forego counseling altogether. It's downhill from there.

Charlie is a successful theater director in New York City and Nicole was once a teen actress who gave up her career and moved from her life in L.A. to become part of Charlie's theatrical company. However, when Nicole is offered a TV show in L.A. she moves back to Hollywood to live temporarily with her mother (Julie Hagerty), taking their young son, Henry (Azhy Robertson), with her. Her mother is a big fan of Charlie's and sad that the couple is breaking up. But Charlie and Nicole are amicable and feel they can settle their divorce without lawyers, until one of Nicole's co-workers urges her to consult her lawyer, who she said "saved her life" during her divorce.  Enter Laura Dern as Nora, a force of nature unto herself, and we learn more about Nicole and the marriage as Nicole tells Nora her story.

Yes, Nicole had given up her life and career in L.A. to move to New York to let Charlie shine in the theatre world there, working as an actress in his theatre company and spending more time as a wife and mother than working on her career.  She began to feel "smaller."  And it didn't help that Nicole also suspected that Charlie had slept with the theatre's stage manager (he did).  So after meeting with Nora, Nicole is emboldened, and when Charlie arrives in L.A. to visit the family, Nicole serves Charlie divorce papers, thus forcing him to also seek an attorney.  He meets with Jay Marotta (Ray Liotta, who has clearly had some "work" done, if you know what I mean - I barely recognized him!), a brash and expensive divorce lawyer who wants Charlie to fight dirty.  Charlie is confused and still hanging on to the idea that he and Nicole can work this out on their own, so he returns to New York without hiring Marotta, but when Nora calls him and says he needs to answer the papers or run the risk of losing custody of Henry, he hires Bert Spitz (Alan Alda), a retired lawyer who has a more conciliatory approach.

Bert is sort of a good old boy and tells Charlie he needs to get an apartment in L.A. to help his custody case, something Charlie is reluctant to do because he is holding on to the idea that they are a "New York family."  However, when it becomes clear to Charlie that Nicole has a very high-powered lawyer and Bert isn't doing the job, he goes back to Marotta and the fight is on. Not a good idea to penny-pinch when it comes to divorce, I guess. So as often happens in divorce, it gets dirty, everything goes to hell, and Charlie and Nicole finally have an epic fight where they tell each other how they really feel.

What could be just another divorce movie is made special by the reality of the characters, scenes and dialogue that Baumbach so expertly marries (pardon the pun). When we, er, marry, we do have a list of things we love about our spouses, we have hope for the future, but sometimes love and hope aren't enough. We are all human with our individual needs and desires and, yes, selfishness. Life sometimes gets in the way of all of those things we love and hope for and what was once a loving, respectful relationship gets broken down and becomes a hotbed of resentment and disillusionment. Then when divorce rears its ugly head, we forget that list of things we loved and we do things we never thought we would do.

It's amazing that any relationship lasts when you reflect on the fact that we are all individuals who spent 18 years with our own family, learning and experiencing all kinds of things and acquiring all kinds of habits often very, very different from the experiences and habits of our spouse. And speaking of families, when divorce happens, you don't just divorce your spouse, you usually divorce his or her entire family. And if you had good relationships with your spouse's family, that is another big loss. Divorce is one of those things where there is a lot of loss and no one really wins.

Baumbach has all of that here, and he gets it all right. 

As someone who has been divorced more times than I dare say (three), I know what it's like and could relate to every single thing in this film. And don't think this is a dirge. Yes, there is some sadness to the film, but it's not what I would call a film about sadness. The film is also very funny at times.  Just like real life, in the midst of sadness and anger, there is also humor and hope for the future.

And it's not just Baumbach who gets it right. 

Johansson and Driver are just miraculous in this, so real that you feel like a fly on the wall, eavesdropping on your neighbors, and if you are or have been married or in a committed relationship, you can't help but relate to these characters. Driver and Johansson make you care about Charlie and Nicole.  There are no villains here, just two people who can no longer be together. Driver has always been a good actor (this is his fourth film with Baumbach), but he shows what he really has in this film. When he as Charlie sings the song "Being Alive," from the Broadway show "Company," I just lost it. That one scene summarized it all: all of the love we so desire but can't have and the pain associated with that love when it goes away...but it's all part of "being alive." 

And Johansson, likewise, has always been a good actress but here she gets to sink her teeth into something with great depth.  Funny, that both of these actors are probably more well-known for superhero type roles - Driver as Kylo Ren in "Star Wars," and Johansson as the Black Widow in the Avengers movies, but here they show what superheros they really are - they are superhero actors who can create something really, really special.

Rosy the Reviewer says..one of my favorite movies of the year! Ring!  Ring!  Oscar calling!
(Available right now on Netflix!  We love you Netflix!)



***Some Movies You Might Have Missed***
(And Some You Will Be Glad You Did)!


On DVD



Stan and Ollie (2018)

Laurel and Hardy's swan song.

Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly star as Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, AKA Laurel and Hardy, the most famous comedy duo of their time. They were most well known during the late 1920's to the mid-40's with their bowler hats and slapstick bits, Laurel the childlike buffoon to Hardy's pompous character who wasn't averse to whacking Stan a time or two.  Hardy became well-known for his slow burn.  

Both had been successful actors on their own before teaming up in 1926 when they both signed separate contracts with the Hal Roach film studio where they remained until the 1940's. The film begins with Laurel's contract expiring and his trying to get more money for them. However, Roach wasn't having it, and Hardy couldn't risk his contract because of his lifestyle, which included gambling debts, so the two parted ways and the film picks up 16 years later, when their careers are waning. Okay, they are basically has beens, and they decide to go off on a theatre tour of England to try to revive their careers while trying to get a deal for a new film.

This film, written by Jeff Pope and A.J. Marriot and directed by Jon S. Baird, is not your basic biopic covering the details of the subjects' lives.  Like the recent Judy Garland film, "Judy," it concentrates on the end of Laurel and Hardy's careers, mostly taking place in 1953, the year that they spent touring England, playing small-time theatres and trying to revive their careers, despite the fact it was clear that their kind of humor was no longer in vogue, especially with Abbott and Costello now on the scene ready to take their place.

In their heyday, Laurel and Hardy appeared together in 107 films and in this film, we get to see some of their most famous comedy bits - the county hospital, waiting at the train station, swapping hats, etc. and the film ends with an epilogue that shows the two in real life.

Coogan and Reilly do a great job impersonating the team, and there is great poignancy in their performances as they depict the sadness that surrounds the end of two stellar careers as Laurel and Hardy struggle to keep going, despite Hardy's health problems and Laurel's disappointments. But still, they had a special bond, Laurel the Englishman, Hardy the American and, despite some resentments when Hardy stayed behind at the Hal Roach studio and made a film without Laurel, the two were like brothers and Coogan and Reilly capture all of those nuances.

Rosy the Reviewer says...a poignant and fitting homage to a theatrical partnership that lasted over 20 years.





Pick of the Litter (2018)


This documentary follows five dogs from a litter who are chosen to be trained for the Guide Dogs for the Blind program.  Will they make the grade?

Few are chosen and even fewer make the grade. Only 300 out of 800 dogs chosen for the training will actually become guide dogs for the visually impaired. Now, you might think that a movie about training dogs to be guide dogs would be dry and boring, but, c'mon. There is a reason why you watch cute puppy videos on YouTube.  Puppies and dogs are darling, and in this film, fascinating, as five labrador retriever puppies from the "P" litter are chosen for the training program to become guide dogs for the blind - Patriot, Potomac, Primrose, Poppet and Phil. We follow each puppy as they make their way through the first 20 months of their training program.  Some will make it and some dogs will be "career changed," which is a polite way of saying they didn't make it.

The puppies are matched with their trainers. Guide Dogs for the Blind gets over 1100 applications a year from people wanting to be trainers. Potomac goes with Linda, whose first dog was "career changed;" Primrose goes with Rebecca, who had six dogs before Primrose; Patriot goes with Nick, a young trainer; Poppet with Cathy and Bill who have had eight dogs before and will be co-training with first-timers, Lisa and Chris; and Phil goes with Patti and Al, first-timers. Each puppy lives with the trainer and is put through its paces to become a help to a visually impaired person.

But not all of the dogs make it. That's not a spoiler, that's life in the Guide Dogs for the Blind world.  It's a grueling training, not just for the dogs but for the trainers as well. For example, Phil gets moved to a more experienced trainer. It's difficult to form a bond with a dog and then have to give it up.

After 12 months of training, there is an evaluation and then again after 15 months and then finally after 20 months the dog either makes it or not.

Directed by Don Hardy and Dana Nachman, the film only touches briefly with the issues of attachment to the dogs - how do the trainers deal with that? They only get them for a short time and then the dogs who have made it that far must go to the final training at the "campus." Some dogs will become breeders, some will "career change," and some will make it as a guide dog and be placed with a visually impaired person.  I would liked to have known more about how the trainers dealt with their attachment to the dog and then having to give it up. 

I know this is going to sound strange, but this film reminded me of "Somm," a film about people trying to pass the Master Sommelier exam (one of my favorite documentaries, by the way).  What does passing a test about wine and becoming a guide dog for the blind have in common?  Lots and lots of work and an exam with a low pass rate.  In "Somm," the film follows four people trying to pass the test to become Master Sommeliers, a test with the lowest pass rates in the world.  This film follow five puppies and shows that, likewise, many dogs are called, few pass the exam to become a guidedog for the blind.

Like I said earlier, the film may sound like it's a bit dry, but it is anything but, and if you love dogs, you will be charmed by it. 

Rosy the Reviewer says...awwww.




***My 1001 Movies I Must See Before I Die Project***



49 to go!

Have YOU seen this classic film?




A Tale of the Wind (1988)
("Une Histoire de Vent")

A filmmaker travels to China hoping to film the wind.

You heard me.  Film the wind.  A mighty difficult job, one would think, but award-winning documentarian Joris Ivens decided that at the age of 90 that was what he needed to do.

Ivens was a Dutch documentary filmmaker who made over 60 films from 1912-1988. During his career, he was known as a leftist, pro-Communist and made political films and was supposedly blacklisted by the U.S. At the age of 90, this was his last film where instead of making political statement, he turned the camera upon himself.

A lifelong asthmatic, Ivens was naturally attuned to the importance of breathing air and so here he concentrates on what is a manifestation of air - the wind.  He travels to China with his wife and filmmaking partner, Marceline Loridan, to try to film the wind. Through a series of surealistic images, dreamscapes, free assocations and interractions with the Chinese people, Ivens produced an impressionistic homage to the wind and thankfully, the wind obliges.

There is no plot or real point to this except almost a final eulogy to himself. And the wind?  Inscrutable and, the wind has very different meanings to different people at different times.  The wind can be a welcome breeze or a horrific tornado of destruction. I am not a huge fan of films that are basically artistic images and free association.  I find those kinds of films very self indulgent.  But at 90, with fifty years of filmmaking behind him, I think Jovins can be forgiven for some self indulgence.  And the film is beautiful to look at.  It's a sort of meditation, and Jovins himself is a magnificent looking 90-year-old.  I hope I make it to 90 and look as good as he does.

Why it's a Must See: "...one of the most graceful and haunting works of self-reflection in cinema...Loridan and Ivens created...one of the most magnificently 'free' films ever made. a fitting tribute to one of the cinema's true originals."
---"1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die"

Rosy the Reviewer says...if you like very artistic, poetic films, you might like this.
(In French and Chinese with English subtitles/Available on YouTube)






***The Book of the Week***



The Unqualified Hostess: I Do It My Way So You Can Too! by Whoopi Goldberg (2019)


Whoopi Goldberg shares her tips on throwing a great party.

I have been a great fan of Whoopi's, most particularly her comedy and her co-hosting "The View."  She is a no-nonsense personality who is not only smart and thoughtful in her views, but she also sees the humor that exists in just about everything.

Here she steps away from "The View" to share her entertaining tips in the same no-nonsense and smart way.

"I do it my way so you can too!"

She covers dinner parties, lunch, afternoon tea, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's and even "Dinner for One."

"Even when it's just you, take the time to set a nice table!"

She gives you the confidence to entertain your way.  You might not have fancy china or silver but if you have a Seven Eleven nearby, you can get some flowers, right?  And put those on the table.

"What you're holding in your hands is a book I put together because I figured that if you're like I was, you probably believe that you don't have any taste.  But I'm here to tell you that you do!...Now, you won't be able to do everything the way I do it, but you can do everything I do the way YOU do it.  And who's gonna tell you that's wrong?"

And as she said once on "The View" when she was talking about this book, people are over and you are feeding them so they shouldn't complain.

"Sitting at the table should be an occasion but it should be fun and YOUR occasion.  Don't worry about what people will think.  Do what you want." 

Whoopi likes to collect things and she enjoys what she has.

"A lot of the stuff that you see is stuff that has been with me for a long time and I like using these things because it reminds me that somebody thought of me."

I agree with her.  That is important to me, too.  I have a lot of my mother's things that I remember her using at holiday celebrations, and it makes me happy to thave those things around me now since I no longer have my mother.

Her decorating tips are whimsical and personal.

Whoopi is not averse to putting little trolls on the table or mismatched silver or high-heeled wine glasses. 

"I like to mix the expected with the unexpected."

But in addition to the whimsy, she offers some practical tips, too, like storing your china plates with a felt circle under each one to keep them from getting scratched or being sure to ask people if they have any food allergies - I mean you don't want to serve peanuts to someone with a peanut allergy and have a dead body at the table, right?  

She also shows how to set up a three-tiered server for afternoon tea and shares best methods for brewing a cup of tea; Halloween decoration tips; her recipes for the perfect Thanksgiving turkey; how to set a holiday table that covers all of the bases; and how she celebrates New Year's Day.

There is the humor you would expect from Whoopi throughout the book, but what's really great about it is her attitude and accessibility.  She really makes you feel that if she can do it, you can do it!

Rosy the Reviewer says...a beautifully produced coffee table book that feels like it was written by your best friend!



Thanks for reading!


See you next Friday

for 


"Rosy the Reviewer's Best and Worst Films of 2019"


and


The Week in Reviews
(What To See and What To Avoid)


as well as


the latest on


"My 1001 Movies I Must See


Before I Die Project" 





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