Author Archive

2020 Vision

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As 2020 draws to a close, I am grateful to be sitting by the fire anticipating a hot pastrami sandwich for lunch, a warm bath, and an afternoon movie. Amy, the cat, is kneading my arms, one at a time, and negotiating a tummy rub. Delia, the dog, is perched on her favorite couch pillow…

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Death Goes to the Movies

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Her lips were red, her looks were free Her locks were yellow as gold; Her skin was as white as leprosy, The Nightmare, Life-In-Death was she, Who thicks man’s blood with cold. Samuel Taylor Coleridge The Rime of the Ancient Mariner     There are many notable cinematic representations of death, the best remembered being…

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Master of Hommage

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Ready Player One’s moral is that it’s okay to play games as long as you take time out for the real world and real people. It’s one hell of a ride, but I couldn’t help noticing that the male protagonist, Wade, got over the death of his aunt lickety-split and got right back to the…

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Projects: In a World of Menus and Sidebars

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The first time I built a website, back in 1999, I used Microsoft Front Page and tweaked individual pages using HTML code. Later, I created a few pages using Dreamweaver. I have always used Adobe Photoshop to edit photos and design graphics. I even learned how to design a web page using Photoshop’s “Save as…

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Not So Ordinary

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When you listen to Sissy Spacek read Stephen King’s Carrie, you can’t help noticing that her narrative voice is very different from the whimpering title character that she played in Brian DePalma’s film version. It is very pleasing to the ear. Spacek speaks with authority and gets to play all the parts this time around….

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All That Homage: La La Land

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Damien Chazelle’s La La Land doesn’t really take place in the city of Los Angeles. The story is set in the mythic Hollywood of cinephiles and hopeless romantics. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling are likeable and give the impression that anyone can sing and dance, but the real star of the movie is the city.  …

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Squiggle! Squiggle! Splat! Splat!

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The Citizen Kane structure worked for me. As did the cast of Vincent Van Gogh characters brought to life by Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman in Loving Vincent. The establishing shots, locations recognizable to any Van Gogh fan, were perfect, but when scenes were played out, I sometimes wished the actors weren’t so obscured by brush strokes. There…

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The Rites to Remain Silent

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The Artist (2011) and Hugo (2011) are fictional depictions of important moments in film history. In the case of Hugo, the characters are based on real people, but the story telling is on such a grand scale that the truth is buried deep beneath the surface. The Artist is a good imitation of a silent film even when the characters are verge…

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What Makes Jasmine So Blue?

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  Inspired by Tennessee William’s Blanche DuBois, but much better kept, Jasmine may not be at the end of her rope. Perhaps, like Ingmar Bergman, who provided a sequel to Scenes From a Marriage, Woody Allen will revisit Jasmine at some future date.   As Hal’s trophy wife, Jasmine thrives. Giving parties, supporting causes, and lunching…

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Mark Time

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In 2017, I continued my relationship with Social Media. I blogged, microblogged, videoblogged, posted, photoposted, updated, checked-in, liked, commented, shared, tweeted, rated, reviewed, googled, and binged. I have the Snapchat app, but I didn’t snap anyone or distort my face with bunny filters.   I have a friend who hates Social Media, he says he…

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