The Cheese Stands Alone

Mo 8/31/20- 1pm appointment with Dr. Kwedar Up 705am: Partly cloudy with temps to low 80's. Watched 'THE DRUMMER AND THE KEEPER' (IMDB TV). Mo 8/31/20- 1pm appointment with Dr. Kwedar Up 705am: Partly cloudy with temps to low 80's. Watched 'THE DRUMMER AND THE KEEPER' (IMDB TV). A tender film about a bipolar Irish rock drummer who meets a young man with Asperger's. The drummer has no control over his impulses, yet he's good with people and the autistic man is very good at control, but is at a complete loss dealing with people. And, a friendly and complementary relationship occurs and it doesn't come off as corny or sentimental...too much.  The film was nominated and won many international film festival awards.I learned that David Byrne is on the autistic spectrum. ***Cancelled tomorrow's dental appointment and scheduled next Thursday, 9/10 at 130pm. I learned that neither PC's have Windows 2004 installed. I will start with the downstairs mach...

Su 8/30/20 Up 705am: Partly sunny and cool- temps to about 80. Pot Shopping- 8-830am. Got a sale at the pot shop. Two eighths for $99 (THC 24%). I asked the clerk why it was on sale and she said that they had more than five pounds and they had to mark it down. I asked why there was no 'shake' for sale and she said that the prices were 'too high'. The inquiry posed more questions than answered.  Watched 'KINGDOM OF US' (Netflix). Seven children reminicse about their lives before and after the suicide of their father. Notes were found that he actually was planning to kill all of them and then himself. Four of the siblings were on the Autistic spectrum. Regardless of the suicide, this still would be one strange family.  Then I watched '21 YEARS RICHARD LINKLATER' (Kanopy). Big movie stars talk about a director that they all seem to love and respect; with Joey Adams, Jack Black, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke, Parker Posey, and Matthew McConaughey.  2pm: Preparing...

 Sa 8/29/20 Up 715am: Partly cloudy and cooler- to low 80's. I wrote up 'A FAINT COLD FEAR'- Robert Daley for the blog. Watched Netflix disc 'QUEEN & SLIM'. A black couple is detained during a traffic stop on their first date. A commotion ensues and the man kills the cop in a reasonable case of self defense and then the film becomes a romantic road picture where they elude the cops from Cleveland, Ohio to rural Louisiana with romantic flair. The film strains a bit to create a couple of 'heroes' (maybe like a black Bonnie and Clyde) and I thought that it shouldn't have ended in a 'suicide by cop' for the pair, but that they should have been murdered by white yokels wearing MAGA hats; with Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith, Bokeem Woodbine, Choe Sevigny, Sturgill Simpson, and Flea. The idea for the story was by James Frey, author of 'A MILLION LITTLE PIECES'...Little Freddie King is a blues artist featured in the film. His mother spell...

Fr 8 28/20 Up 730am: Partly sunny and a few degrees cooler- to upper 80's. Watched '1BR' (Netflix). A creepy concept, but no follow through. A young woman arrives in LA and gets an apartment in a complex with many 'wonderful' neighbors. However, they are all cult members and they want her. 'ROSEMARY'S BABY' was the Gold Standard of creepy neighbors...and, 'THE SENTINEL' was another classic. This one isn't really in the running, but worth a look. Then watched 'WOMEN HE'S UNDRESSED' (Kanopy). Australian, small-town guy, Orry~Kelly, makes it in Hollywood as a chic dress designer to the super- stars. He met Archie Leach and was in a relationship with him until he got famous as an actor and changed his name to Cary Grant. Cary Grant and Randolf Scot were both gay men living a lie. Although a bad drunk for most of his career Orry~Kelly manages to snare three Oscars. A strange presentation (seemed to be going for an almost 'dream-lik...

Th 8/27/20- Dentist at noon  I made the appointment late yesterday afternoon. It's not a toothache, but my gums are very sore on the front, lower right. This is where the tooth was filled during my last visit. My dental benefits have ended for this year and I'm apprehensive about today's visit.   Up 735am: Humid and hot- almost to 90 with a slight chance of rain early this afternoon.  I watched  'SHEPHERDS AND BUTCHERS' (Netflix). A very young South African prison guard murders seven black men and his defense is that he was mentally unstable due to his job in the execution chamber and his assignment of death row prisoners. Seven men hung at once and due to the barbarity of the practice, the death penalty was abolished in 1995. I wonder what the ratio of black to white was on South Africa's death row? A harrowing film, and an odd choice to have Steve Coogan as the defense lawyer, but he pulled it off beautifully.    ***Mouse stopped working and I change...

 We 8/26/20 Up 705am: Partly sunny and hot with temps to just over 90. I added 'Monster'- REM and 'Too High To Die'- THE MEAT PUPPETS to the Mp3 player and deleted UNCLE TUPELO, LOU REED, and IAN MOORE. I watched 'THE CRIMES THAT BIND' (Netflix). An Argentinian film about infanticide, rape, and class privileged. A wealthy couple does everything that they can to support and defend their son until they realize that he is an immature huckster and a violent rapist. When the truth is exposed the couple reject their son's plea for help and offer emotional and monetary support to the women and children that he abused. A strange yet effective ending.  Then I watched 'AIR' (Crackle). Two guys are in charge of a group of people who are in suspended animation chambers in a bunker after an apocalypse involving worldwide chemical warfare. The two guys are just maintenance men. They awake for two hours every six months to tend the people in 'deep sleep' fo...

Tu 8/25/20 Up 715am: Sunny and unbearably hot- to lower 90's. Watched 'YOU GO TO MY HEAD' (Kanopy). The film opens with a woman walking away from a bad car accident in the middle of the Sahara Desert. She leaves her male companion in the car. She might not have been aware of him due to her injuries or he might have been dead. She has amnesia and the first person she sees is an older architect and he claims to be her husband. He isn't, but he loves her as if he was. A strange film about love and attraction, filmed entirely in Morocco and the cinematography was beautiful. Winner of numerous international awards. Then watched 'LANDLINE' (Amazon Prime).  A dramedy about a quirky, 90's, NYC family that grapples with falling in and out of love. The co-writers described the film as a "comedy about a family that grows closer through divorce rather than being torn apart."-with Jenny Slate, Jay Duplass, Abby Quinn, John Turturro, and Edie Falco. 2pm: The pla...

 Mo 8/24/20 Up 730am: To 94 and mostly sunny...The Heat Is Here! Watched 'GOOD PEOPLE' (Amazon Prime). A cash strapped American couple living in London rent their basement to a criminal. He dies of an overdose and they find a huge stash of money and drugs. No one claims it for days, so they assume it's theirs. Not a chance. A fairly 'by-the-numbers' domestic thriller; with Kate Hudson, James Franco, and Tom Wilkinson. Then I watched 'THE HOUSE I LIVE IN' (YouTube). This was mentioned as one of the best documentaries about prison reform on a recent podcast and it's offered on YouTube in a collection of segments lasting a few minutes each.  And then a 28" lecture by David Simon, the creator of 'The Wire'. His talk was designed to draw attention to the inequality that is baked into the system. Capital is now so much stronger than labor that anything that turns a profit will be endorsed no matter how much it harms society. Positive benefits are ...

 Su 8/23/20 Up 630am: Partly sunny with temps to almost 90. Reading and watching videos about Q ANON. Watched 'SIMON KILLER (Netflix). A clever and engrossing profile of a psychopath masquerading as a troubled lady's man in Paris; with Brady Corbet. He played one of the fiendish cult members in 'MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE'. I didn't recognize or connect until I read his page at Wikipedia.   Then I watched 'EXHIBITION' (Amazon Prime). Another film by Joanna Hogg, director of 'SOUVENIR'. Two married artists live in a modernist townhouse in the very chic west end of London. He wants to sell, they put it on the market, and she has second thoughts which manifest in some strange behavior. Very much an Art Film, yet strangely captivating and both principal characters are absolutely believable, yet not very likable. Hogg is a master of presenting well-drawn characters that are both understandable and unsavory ; with Viv Albertine of 'The Slits' and mod...

 Sa 8/22/20 Up 645am: Sunny and even warmer- mid 80's. I added JABBERJAW, THE STREETS, and PANTHALASSA (Miles Davis). I watched 'STINKING HEAVEN' (Kanopy). My post on Kanopy: "This is more of an acting exercise than a feature film and it didn't seem to commit to either dark satire or stark drama." But then I learned that the comments section for Kanopy has been discontinued. Then watched 'JANE AND EMMA' (Amazon Prime). The film is about the relationship between Emma Hale Smith, wife of Prophet Joseph Smith of Latter-day Saints, and Jane Manning James, a freed black woman who, along with her family, became converted members of the faith. The night that Prophet Smith was murdered Emma demands that all church members leave her to grieve the loss of her husband with just her friend, Jane. An interesting film because it did not gloss over the racist attitudes of many of the 'saved' within the congregation. And, it sheds light on Emma's role as t...

Fr 8/21/20 Up 710am: Sunny and a few degrees warmer- to 84. Watched 'SOUVENIR' (Amazon). Somewhat of a difficult film, but in the end it's a captivating portrait of a toxic relationship between a young English couple who belong to Britain's upper-class. Julie is a beginning film school student from a very wealthy family who meets Tom, a rather unsuitable, yet privileged boyfriend. "Do you have to like the characters in order to like the film"? The answer is a resounding 'No' because of the morally questionable character of Anthony, the junkie aristocrat who is nearly equal parts charming and repellent; with Tom Burke, Tilda Swinton, and Honor Swinton Byrne (Tilda Swinton's real-life daughter). I really liked this one! I watched a few YouTube reviews and a 49" interview with Joanna Hogg (dir.), Honor Swinton Byrne and Tilda Swinton. I located two more films by Joanna Hogg at Amazon Prime; 'Archipelago' and 'Exhibition'. Then I w...

Th 8/20/20 Up 630am: Sunny with temps to low 80's. ***I had a really bad cramp in my lower left leg. Usually they go away when I stand, but this time it is still very sore; using muscle rub and hope it works (it did). Watched 'THE RIVER KING' (Amazon Prime). A drowned teenager is found dead in a frozen river and a local cop traces the culprits to the town's private academy. It appears he was killed during an initiation or hazing incident, but when all the facts are examined, it was just a suicide. From a novel by Alice Hoffman and I'm sure that the book was better, but the film was worth a look;  with Edward Burns and Jennifer Ehle. Filmed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada in the winter.  Then I watched 'FRAILTY' (Amazon Prime).  The father of two young boys has a 'heavenly visitation' and is told by an angel to kill demons that appear to be people. It's told from one of the boy's perspectives and he can't reconcile the fact that the father...

We 8/19/20- 2pm eye appointment at Springfield Clinic, First Floor West Up 710am: Bright and sunny with temps only to 80. It would have been a beautiful Illinois State Fair Day, but... Watched 'THE GREAT HEIST' (Netflix)- 'Based on real events' about a Colomiban bank heist. I watched the first four episodes and saved the last two for tonight.  AMERIPRISE TOTALS $2,314,813 $2,121,085   $193,728 - How much I've gained since 1/1/20 1215: Surfing the net and waiting for Janny's arrival at 115pm. She arrived at 1pm. At the clinic at 1pm. Checked in and went to Customer Service and learned that I have to wait until the bill is posted before I can get the paperwork to get repayment of the $40. 2 exams, 2nd with drops. Waiting for doctor 155~215pm..I will easily qualify cataract surgery, but otherwise my eyes are in good shape. Janny and I talked on the breezeway until 440pm. She seems far more right wing than I remembered.  450pm...Parkview, thru Wash. Pk. on the north...

Tu 8/18/20 Up 720am: Sunny with temps only to 80. Watched 'MRS. LOWRY AND SON' (Kanopy). My post at Kanopy: "A showcase for the immense acting talents of Vanessa Redgrave and Timothy Spall in a film about the toxic relationship between a mother and son. Although nearly all of the action occurs in only one bedroom and the tone is a bit melodramatic, yet it's the kind of film that sticks with you long after the credits have rolled." Then I watched 'SUPREMACY' (Amazon Prime). A high-tension and gripping film about a family of blacks who are taken hostage in the middle of the night by a man and woman who have just murdered a cop and are affiliated with the Aryan Brotherhood; with Joe Anderson, dawn Olivieri, and Danny Glover. 215~3pm...Walked to Fairhills gas station to fill the can. Then read ROBERT DALEY in the living room.  415pm...Up to Parkview, Wash. Pk., Wiggins south, then east on Outer Park, Douglas north thru park north side, up the hill, Parkview, a...

 Mo 8/17/20 Up 705am: Cloudy with a chance of showers later this afternoon- low 80's. I Wrote up 'NIGHT SINS'- Tami Hoag for the blog. And I ordered the next book, 'GUILTY AS SIN' from Amazon. Watched 'NIGERIAN PRINCE' (Netflix).  A high school aged boy living in Los Angeles is sent to live with his aunt in Legos, Nigeria. His parents have separated and his mom thinks he needs to 'learn of his roots'. The Aunt's son is a Nigerian Scammer. Mayhem ensues. Barely rates a 'C'. The film was partly funded by Spike Lee's '40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks.  ***940am: Black male, 20" knocked on the door and asked, "Is "?" here? ... I didn't catch the name, but I knew that they weren't here. A gray late model car was in the driveway and a man/woman?/in a mask was behind the wheel. Drove away and it seemed legit, but in five years nothing like this has happened.   Began 'THE PATRIOT' (Netflix-2hrs 45mins). ...

 Su 8/16/20 Up 7am: Sunny with temps to low 80's- Very cool morning. ***Found out that Hoopla has dropped to seven choices per month when I tried to borrow 'THE HISTORY OF VIOLENCE'. Added BECK, PAUL BUTTERFIELD BLUES BAND, JAMES BLOOD ULMER, and THE BLACK CROWES to Mp3. Watched 'LIFE AND NOTHING MORE' (Kanopy). My post at Kanopy: "In the style of 'The Kitchen Sink Realism' of early 1960's Britain reapplied to contemporary black Americans at the low end of the economic scale.  A complete absence of easy answers or sanctimonious posturing, yet it's obvious that the film demonstrates that poverty with no way out, is a sure-fire recipe for social and personal disaster."  Then watched 'IN THE AISLES'. A deliberately paced, dead-panned drama about a forklift driver in a big box German store. He's lonely and falls for a married woman and then a friend hangs himself, but he's promoted to do clerical work. His pointless and joyless ...

 Sa 8/15/20 Up 645am: Partly cloudy with a chance of rain all afternoon- low 80's. Watched Netflix disc 'A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD'.  How do you make a movie about a living saint without making it sanctimonious? The film rates about 85% on that score because honest beliefs need not be tedious or self-righteous; with Tom Hanks, Matthew Rhys, Susan Kelechi Watson, and Chris Cooper. Then I watched 'CHARLIE COUNTRYMAN' (IMDB-TV).  Charlie's mom is removed from life support. She dies and as she heads off to the afterlife she tells her son (completely inexplicably) to go to Bucharest. On the plane to eastern Europe his seatmate dies and before he heads off to the afterlife he wants Charlie to deliver a hat to his daughter. After arriving in Bucharest he does find the man's daughter, she's married and involved with a criminal element. And then they fall in love and  run from the police and bad guys all over the city; with Shia Labeouf, Evan Rachel Wo...

Fr 8/14/20- County Market Up 630am: Sunny to mid 80's.  Back from the grocery shopping by 740am.  Under $80 bought- no beer and almost no canned goods. Watched 'BEING JOHN MALKOVICH' (Netflix)...  "Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 48 wins & 75 nominations..."  A puppeteer is forced to take a clerical position on the 'seventh-and-a-half' floor of an office building in Manhattan and discovers a portal into the mind of John Malkovich. I had forgotten how crazy and hilarious it was; with John Cusak, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener, Mary Kay Place, and Orson Bean. Then I watched 'TRUST' (IMDB-TV).  An intelligent portrayal of a fourteen year old girl who is targeted by an online pedophile twenty years her senior. It shows that the actual sexual encounter is not the worst part of the ordeal and the effects to her family and friends seem insurmountable. The girl can only accept that she's lost the only person who seemed to love her, and that turns o...

 Th 8/13/20 Up 630am: Sunny with temps to mid 80's. I watched 'PAGE EIGHT' (Hoopla).  An MI5 agent learns that the Prime Minister was aware that the US had secret torture prisons all over the world.  This information was on Page 8 of a secret government document; with Bill Nighy, Rachel Weisz, Michael Gambon, Judy Davis, Ralph Fiennes, Felicity Jones, and Ewen Bremmer. A very classy, and very 'British' treatment of the 'business of secrecy' in the 21st century.  ***PC shut down at 830am for the goddamn updates. Ten gut-wrenching minutes to do its thing. I hate this shit and I'm fairly sure that the downstairs machine will be fucked as well.   Then I watched 'LAGGIES' (Kanopy). The director, Lynn Shelton died in May of 2020 of an undiagnosed blood disorder and not COVID-19. She was Marc Maron's partner...From the Los Angeles Times- "Maron said they thought she had come down with strep throat and treated the illness as such after Shelton t...

 We 8/12/20 Up 640am: Mostly sunny and humid- mid 80's. Searched Hoopla for more titles to borrow before they reach the limit. Watched 'CHILD 44' (Hoopla). A senior party official in Stalinist Russia  uncovers dozens of very similar murders of young boys, but there is no will to apprehend the killer because there is no murder in  Communism because murder is a disease that occurs only under Capitalism; with Tom Hardy, Joel Kinnaman, Noomi Rapace, Vincient Cassel, Paddy Considine, and Gary Oldman. Then watched 'RUDEBOY: THE STORY OF TROJAN RECORDS' (Kanopy).  As I was trying to write a response in the comments section I noticed that I wrote something when I saw the film a month ago. Everybody knows the music of Bob Marley and Toots, yet the early Trojan stuff seems to have been forgotten. And, I'm seeking it out on YouTube.  135pm: The lawn service began mowing at Boozer's old house.  145pm: PC is 'Off' and the plan is to bike to Lincoln Park and walk ...

 Tu 8/11/20 Up 7am: Overcast to partly cloudy with a very chance of rain and much cooler- temps to just over 80. I watched 'SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER' that I ordered from Hoopla yesterday.  A father has been grief stricken for many years because one of his sons ran away from home after an argument over a Scrabble game. He has never been seen again. The film is about how the father and his other son and family rekindle their relationships. A touching and sweet film and Bill Nighy was his usual best; with Sam Riley and Bill Nighy. ***I also ordered 'CHILD 44' for tomorrow. ***1150am: Another muscle car was delivered to Boozer's old house. Possibly a Dodge, black.  Then I watched 'ELIZABETH HARVEST' (Netflix). The wife of a billionaire genius dies of a rare disease. He clones her into several copies and searches for a cure, and then one of the clones kills him. She is trapped in the house on a huge estate and must fight the billionaire's blind son and his fema...

 Mo 8/10/20 Up 730am: Hot and humid with temps to the low 90's with a chance of storms this afternoon. Very high winds with little rain during the early evening. It looked scary and the temperature dropped about thirty degrees in thirty minutes.  Ordered 'MADAME' and 'SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER' from Hoopla before the library reached the limit. Watched 'MADAME' (Hoopla). A rich Parisian woman has a dinner party of thirteen, so she has the maid pretend to be a guest so that it won't be unlucky. One of the rich guests falls in love with her, but in the end, when he learns the truth, he dumps her. An odd and unexpected ending; with Toni Collette, Harvey Keitel, and Rossy de Palma. Then watched 'THE MANDELA EFFECT' (Amazon Prime). Not even 80 minutes, but one of the finest 'alternative reality' films I've seen. A couple loses their eight year old daughter in a drowning accident at the beach. The husband is a computer programmer and thinks tha...

 Su 8/9/20 Up 705am: Partly sunny and humid- mid 80's. ***When I went to throw the trash in the garage I noticed my keys were not in the drawer. They were in the drawer below. This could have gotten ugly! ***Ordered a 1/4oz of Pheno 51 Shake from the pot shop: $65 (over $80 with tax). The appointment is from 830-9am. and I left for the shop about 815am. Then watched Netflix disc 'THE MISSING PERSON'.  An alcoholic Chicago PI is paid to follow a man and later it's revealed that he was one 'of the missing' from the twin towers attack on 9/11. His wife only wants to talk to him, but he has a new life dedicated to helping lost children. The shattered detective struggles with 'doing the right thing'. A superior 'hard-boiled film noir'; Michael Shannon and Amy Ryan. Time Out:"It’s Shannon’s slow, steady world of hurt that makes the film watchable." However, I think it makes a lot more than just 'watchable'. I'd go with 'semi-r...

 Sa 8/8/20 Up 650am: Partly cloudy with showers possible late this afternoon- mid 80's. I wrote up 'MODEL BEHAVIOR'- Jay McInerney for the blog. ***Ordered more laxative from Amazon Trying to find out how to transfer a CD to YouTube Music and they aren't making it easy. I started watching 'INCEPTION' (Amazon Prime); with Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, Michael Caine, and Lukas Haas. Too much monkey business on the screen... A.K.A- Special Effects. In the mood for something a bit more thoughtful.  So I switched to ''ARKANSAS' (Amazon Prime). Two hapless, low level street drug dealers from the Dixie Mafia inexplicably find themselves running a lucrative and deadly drug empire....A VERY FUNNY SEQUENCE: After completing a drug deal at a customer's house they must wait and watch a movie. People coming and leaving could raise suspicion, so you do the deal and stay for a film......

 Fr 8/7/20 Up 730am: More beautiful sunny weather- temps to 80. Watched Netflix disc 'LITTLE WOMEN'. This was one of the better films of the year- 73 wins and 185 nominations; with Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Laura Drn, Timothee Chalamet, Tracy Letts, Bob Odenkirk, Crish Cooper, and Meryl Streep.   From The Hollywood Reporter:"... coltish physicality and hard-charging pluck by the luminous Saoirse Ronan... From The A.V. Club: "Little Women is the best kind of Hollywood film: thoughtful yet escapist, sophisticated yet accessible, expertly crafted and deeply felt."  Then I watched 'WHAT KEEPS YOU ALIVE' (Netflix). A Canadian film about a married lesbian couple who go to a secluded lake house where Jules learns that her wife is a homicidal maniac when she pushes her over a cliff. She lives, but Jules's wife is hunting her down. Had this been the story of a hetero couple it wouldn't have had nearly the same impact as a same sex couple- just because th...

Th 8/6/20 Up 7am: Another beautiful summer day. Sunny with temps to almost 80. Watched 'THE SERIAL KILLER CULTURE' (Hoopla). A museum curator of monster movie memorabilia collected artwork of serial killers and is a Louisiana mortician by day. The people who organize walking tours of Jeffery Dahmer's Milwaukee neighborhood. FUN FACTS: More women than men are interested in 'True Crime' and serial killers. Gacy's 'Pogo' paintings were done in assembly line fashion. A comedy folk act that writes songs that satirize  serial killers. An internationally renowned Swedish heavy metal band celebrates serial killer, child rapist and cannibal, Albert Fish. And profiles of a few artists whose work is inspired by serial killers. Somewhat interesting because I am interested in the subject; 'If a human did it, I want to know about it'.  Then I watched 'BRIAN ENO- 1971-1977 The Man Who Fell To Earth'. (Almost two and a half hours) Whether Brian Eno is kn...

We 8/5/20 Up 715: Another beautiful day with plenty of sun and temps to the mid 70's. Last night I got an email from Janny about our father's WWII medals that she and Joe got in the mail. I wrote to her about what they meant and Rambo he was not. I watched 'PRISON SONG' (Netflix). A black prison genre film that stars Elvis Costello? He plays a teacher and a defense lawyer. Although the film highlights the egregiously unfair criminal justice system and the 'privatization' of prisons, a better film might have been how Costello became involved in this project; with Q-Tip, Harold Perrineau, Elivis Costello, and Mary J. Bilge. Then watched 'THE DEATH OF DICK LONG' (Kanopy). I haven't laughed this hard at a movie in I don't remember when (and it weren't the weed!). My post at Kanopy: " A regional black comedy set in very rural Alabama where the characters play it straight and deadpan, yet what they say is flat-out hilarious. If you're a fa...

Tu 8/4/20 Up 720am: It should be a beautiful summer day. Sunny with temps to the mid 70's. Watched 'AN EDUCATION' (Netflix). Set in England during the early 60's a sixteen year old schoolgirl falls for an older man and drops her plans to attend Oxford. But she learns that he's  married and he makes his money through various semi-criminal enterprises; with Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina, Cara Seymour, Rosamund Pike, and very small yet powerful roles for Emma Thompson and Sally Hawkins. Screenplay by Nick Hornby. Really good and Carey Mulligan was fantastic.  Then watched 'LITTLE PARADISE' (Amazon Prime). A run-down '3 star'(?) desert motel is the setting for this story about a collection of quirky characters who become players in a strangely violent 'drug deal gone bad'. And, a couple of black drug dealers play golf for the first time and a winning Power Ball ticket is bought. Barely above the level of a student film, but I gue...

Mo 8/3/20 Up 710am: Cloudy and cool with a slight chance of- temps to mid 70's. I wrote up 'STRAIGHT MAN'- Richard Russo for the blog. Watched 'THE HATER' (Netflix). An ambitious Polish deceiver insinuates himself into the corporate world of social media and demonstrates how much power could accrue to a sociopath who was able to shape and control the flow of social media. Much more is done than trolling online communities and events are staged to be disrupted by 'terrorists' who have been hired and manipulated by the organizers. A very well-done film. I wrote The Wrap and invited Janny and Joe to come over any day at 1130am. We could sit on the breezeway to chat and I could show them the new treadmill. I asked for a day's notice.  Then I watched the last two episodes of 'FEAR CITY: NEW YORK VS. THE MAFIA'. Authorities were able to determine that the eight NY families had control of the union controlling all of the concrete that was poured in NYC ...

Su 8/2/20 Up 640am: Partly sunny with a slight chance of rain late this afternoon- to low 80's. Not a single drop fell. Watched 'AMORES PERROS' (Amazon Prime). This is one of my favorite films and the title translates to 'Love Dogs'. I didn't realize this film is twenty years old! VARIETY: "...a complex plot with clarity and precision..." CHICAGO TRIBUNE: "A stunner: a fiercely brilliant film of such wrenching impact, nonstop drive and unpredictability that watching it becomes an exhilarating ride." PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: "...one of the most breathtaking and impressive directing debuts in years..." 3 Interlocking Story-lines Connected By A Traffic Accident: 1) Young man has a bad-ass fighting dog and is in love with his sister-in-law. 2) A model is terribly injured and her life is forever changed. 3) After 20 years on the streets an old man attempts to reconnect with his daughter. Director: Alejandro G. Inarritu; with Gael Garcia Be...

Sa 8/1/20 Up 630am: Much cooler, overcast, and rain through late morning- to only mid 70's. Watched 'EARTHQUAKE BIRD' (Netflix). A repressed western Japanese translator meets a local photographer and they begin an affair. But he seems to be attracted to her friend and maybe he's a psychopath and kills her friend. Lots of melodrama, but no pay off and the whole experience ends on a dull note. Such a waste of the acting talent of Alicia Vikander ('EX MACHINA') and Riley Keough ('AMERICAN HONEY'). Then I watched 'I'M TALKING TO YOU' (Amazon Prime). 'A Day In The Life' of Two Garda cops who are assigned to monitor traffic on the beltway around Dublin, Ireland. Social issues are raised, but it's hard to be serious if the two leads remind the viewer so much of Laurel and Hardy. 1220Pm: Got up too early so I'll read/nap for a while and then either walk or bike to the credit union to deposit the check.  220pm. After reading/nap I went...