'127 Hours': ***1/2 stars

james franco gives the performance of his career and possibly one of the best performance by an actor this year. it certainly is one of the best performances of all time.

danny boyle (slumdog millionaire) directs a minor masterpiece. the grand canyon costars with mr. franco as the alps did with julie andrews in 'the sound of music'. the terrain sets the man vs nature scenario. james franco shows the passage of these 127 hours all over his face. he is really quite remarkable.

if you don't know the story here it is in a nutshell: adrenalin junkie aaron ralston literally gets stuck between a rock and a hard place. to survive he must amputate his arm. he does. and he survives to live another day.

there is an amazing scene of a storm as the hero is caught in the canyon. it is beautifully directed and photographed. it sent shivers thru me.

this is not an easy film to watch in it's second half. however, you should not miss it. and to miss james franco's performance would be criminal for any film lover.

 james franco and director danny boyle

Today Is World Aids Day

i lost too many friends...i remember them today. i remember your friends today. we must remember!

Happy Birthday Bette

'you don't own me'

 

'is that all there is?'

'fat as i am'

'i will survive'

'i look good'

Bette: 'I'll Never Forget It You Know'

'Winter's Bone': *star

'winter's bone' is this year's darling of the critics. infact it is as dull as dish water. i love independent films. each year a number of those released are better than 'mainstream' studio films. this is not one of them.

jennifer lawrence in the lead role is being lauded all over the place especially at film festivals. she is being hailed by many critics and bloggers alike as the 'best' of the year. better than whom? everyone else? she is merely fine in a boring role in a boring film. 

it is not the worst movie of the year. that slot is still reserved for 'alice in wonderland'. 

in two words: don't bother!

Franco and Hathaway to Host Oscars

well perhaps they got it half right. perhaps.
franco is that half. hathaway oy vay!

Song of the Day: 'Ode to Billy Joe'

For Mom

my mom's name was caroline but was called dolly since she was a kid. so this one's for you mom.

(thanks pet)

I'll Be Back Soon

my mom passed over this weekend past. I plan on resuming postings on monday

Jill Clayburgh: Memories V: 1981-1983

jill had three more major releases that showcased her star quality if not her declining box office success between 1981 and 1983.

1981 gave us 'first monday in october'. based on the broadway play jill played the first woman appointed as a supreme court justice. jill was perfect for the role as the intelligent, independent woman that she embodied. the plotline after her selection to the court declined into a silly unrealistic 'mystery'. jill was as good as ever but caught in an underwhelming and inferior script.

1982 gave us 'i'm dancing as fast as i can'. it was a 'rushed' job as another hollywood strike was looming. jill later said she believed this real life drama about valium withdrawal may have been served better as a tv film. perhaps she was correct. it bombed at the box office and left even me wishing her talent had not been wasted on it. 

1983's 'hannah k' more or less put the proverbial nail in jill's star power and film career. she wanted to work with costa-kravas and considering he was the director and she was the star this should have been a hit. so what went wrong? it's politics went wrong. jill portrayed an attorney in this pro palestinian drama. it was a good film but theater owners refused to show it. so much for free speech. i'll say this as a jew...should we not be able to see two sides of the story? guess not! 

if you can find it see it. it's better than we'd be led to believe.

jill's era came to an end in 1983. she would go on to star and costar in films and tv movies until her untimely death. she concentrated more on motherhood thru the 80's and 90's. she returned to the stage where her talent was better utilized and appreciated.

i truly believe had she lived the screen would have seen her 'rise' again much like julie christie has after her 'icon' period ended. like julie she would have returned in good and meaty roles later in life and would have been a welcome relief from 'the flavor of the year' actresses. we'll never really know but i know that i am correct.

rest in peace friend jill. you are sorely missed but have left a nice body of work for us to revisit. thank you for your talent, your grace and your beauty.

Jill Clayburgh: Memories IV

before 'an unmarried woman' there were three notable  jill films, some films worth forgetting, some tv appearances and two very notable tv movies. 'husting' (1976) and 'griffin and phoenix: a love story" (1976) were career boosts for jill. 'hustling' earned her an emmy nom portraying wanda a street smart prostitute helping reporter fran morrison (lee remick) expose the underbelly of the street trade.

1976 also brought jill to the big screen in 'gable and lombard' i love this film. it showed a wise, funny jill as the zany carole lombard bucking the hollywood system. the movie was better than it was received. i recommend it.

'silver streak' was also released in 1976. it was really the first big movie hit that jill costarred in. it was a funny, breezy cross country train romp. it holds up today. jill shined in it.

1977 saw jill in what was basically a menage with burt reynolds and kris kristofferson in 'semi-tough'. it was a year before 'an unmarried woman' and jill's star was on the ascendant.

to be continued

'Fair Game' Rates ***stars

naomi watts shines in this story of the bullies of the bush administration vs all well the meaning dedicated americans embodied by cia agent valerie plame. the outing of ms. plame by cheney and his lap dog scotter libby is condensed well and keeps a good pace by director doug liman. mr. liman keeps it strangely pibartisan. an amazing fete considering mr. libby was guilty as hell in her outing and the dark shadow of the mad dick cheyney looms ominously over the proceedings.

sean penn so becomes ms. plames husband joe wilson that it's almost eerie. ina more subdued than usual performance he once again proves how great an actor he is. but the film does belong to naomi watts. i see a possible oscar nom looming for her.

Song of the Day: 'Heart of Glass'

blondie's 'heart of glass' is classic

Song of the Day: Josh Groban's 'Hidden Away' from ''Illuminations''

i just love josh's voice. i've often said if i believed in god he has given his voice to josh. 'illuminations', released this week, is quite beautiful to say the least.

Jill Clayburgh: Memories III

after 'an unmarried woman' there were four films that kept jill in the spotlight but her dominance in film as the iconic 70's woman was about to end. jill made some strange choices during this period. but she wanted to work with great directors like bertolucci and costa- kravas. these turned out to be great personal choices but bad career moves. remember in hollywood actors, particularly women, are only as good as their last film or should i say the gross income of their last film. the following did not make money. jill's star power was fading. i always considered this a great loss for film.

first there was 'luna' prior to 'starting over'. jill wanted to work with bernardo bertolucci and she did in this film. the topic bordered on the strange often bizarre and bordered on the incestuous. it was rough to watch for many. jill was amazing in it. the audience was not ready for it. yet it is a good film and deserves a shot. if you are squeamish by-pass it. otherwise take a risk and decide for yourself.

the opening scene of 'luna'. the cameraman on this filmed loved jill. it is so apparent. she has never looked so beautiful on screen.

to be continued

Song of the Day: 'On the Path of Glory'

'on the path of glory' recorded by petula clark and harry belafonte caused quite a stir when the duo performed it on pet's tv special in 1968. while performing petula dared touch harry's arm. the network execs went nuts. a white woman touching a 'negro'? oh lord that was too much for the lily white cowards of the day. eventually brains won out and the anti-war song written by petula was performed and seen as intended. one would think we might have come far from this mentality but with two wars raging and the 'birthers' front and center i sadly believe we have not.

as originally performed live

as recorded by pet on her 'petula clark: these are my songs'" cd

Happy Birthday Petula

'with one look'

'i dreamed a dream'

'as if we never said goodbye'