Posts tagged GAME
“Fair Game” The Target, Not Spying
Nov 17th
“The Target, Not Spying”
FAIR GAME tells the real-life story of an incredibly serious incident that happened in recent history that is not talked about anymore and unfortunately seems to be on its way to becoming forgotten.
This is unfortunate, because what happened was so serious that the law makes committing it a crime punishable by death.
Ironically, the law was passed during the administration of President George H.W. Bush, former CIA head.
The crime? Exposing the identity of an undercover CIA agent.
And just to make matters more intriguing, a case has already been made that Bush the son was obsessed with outshining his father’s accomplishments and might have invaded Iraq in 2003 because his father had failed to do so in 1991 during the First Gulf War.
The events of this movie are the background for the reasons stated at the time that led Bush the son to invade Iraq.
The subjects who were involved were CIA agent Valerie Plame, played so well by Naomi Watts, and her husband, former ambassador Joe Wilson, played just as well by Sean Penn.
The movie begins shortly after 9/11 with some stock footage of Vice President Dick Cheney saying to the camera, “We will take whatever action is necessary to defend our security and our freedom.”
What he doesn’t say, but what turned out to be the case is “even if it is illegal.”
Then we see scenes of the professional life and family life of Valerie, who was an expert on the Middle East, but she cannot tell Joe where she has been or what she has done. They communicate by Post-It notes on the refrigerator.
Because of his qualifications and familiarity with Africa, Joe is asked by the CIA to go to Niger to investigate if Saddam Hussein were obtaining uranium from there for his nuclear-weapons program, and Joe’s report is that Hussein was not.
That is not what President Bush said in his infamous State of the Union address, Iraq was invaded, Joe wrote an article in THE NEW YORK TIMES entitled “What I Didn’t Find in Africa,” and in retaliation the White House leaked that Valerie worked for the CIA.
FAIR GAME refers to the target and not to spying, and it is a great movie that should never be forgotten for its subject matter and its message.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“Dinner for Schmucks” Dinner with Redemption
Aug 4th
“Dinner with Redemption”
DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS is a comedy that takes a long time getting to the laughs, and once it does, they are mean-spirited laughs and all at the expense of others.
Steve Carell plays Barry, a meek little man whose hobby is constructing elaborate dioramas that use dead mice dressed up as people in them.
Paul Rudd plays Tim, an analyst on the sixth floor of an investment firm who wants the office of a colleague who just got fired.
In other words, Tim wants a promotion to the top floor, and he gets an opportunity when he comes up with an idea to land a new client for their company who has $100 million to invest.
So, Tim’s boss invites Tim to a dinner party he hosts once a month called “Dinner for Winners,” and the next one is this Saturday. Each person brings a guest who has a skill or talent of some kind, everyone makes fun of them, the winner gets a trophy, and they all are released into the world no more the wiser.
Tim has doubts about this cruelty, and his girlfriend, Julie, doesn’t want him to attend, but then Tim meets Barry, who is a tornado of destruction and makes Tim’s personal life much worse.
Barry has an odd way of thinking, and as he tells Tim, “In the words of John Lennon, ‘You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not.'”
Tim can’t convince Barry that he is leaving off three words at the end, but no matter. Barry doesn’t listen well to others.
You can see the gags coming ahead of time, but you will still laugh, mostly in spite of yourself, and there are two subplots that add to the gags at the dinner party, one involving a woman who has been stalking Tim for three years and the other involving Julie’s relationship with a self-absorbed artist.
The movie wants us to feed sad and sorry for Barry, but we can’t. Also, you might be getting tired of Carell playing an idiot, but he does it so well, doesn’t he?
And as much as you might want to hate this movie for its premise, remember that it is based on a French film, the 1998 THE DINNER GAME.
DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS to its credit, however, redeems itself at the end.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
