Posts tagged live
“The King’s Speech” Bertie’s Greatest Test
Jan 6th
“Bertie’s Greatest Test”
THE KING’S SPEECH portrays the unusual events in 1930s England that led to the coronation of the father of the current Queen Elizabeth to become King George VI, but more importantly the difficult personal struggle that the king went through in order to be able to speak in public.
As hard as it is to feel sorry for a king, this delightful film makes the audience feel sorry for the stammering monarch who was known as Bertie to his family, as well as to feel admiration for the three actors who portray Bertie, his speech therapist, and his supportive wife.
Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter play the three roles, and all of them have been mentioned for awards for their fine acting performances.
The story begins in 1934, and Prince Albert, the Duke of York, has been asked by his father, King George V, to give an address at Wembley Stadium in London. To watch him struggle is as painful to the audience in the theater as it must have been to the crowd in the stadium.
So, Bertie and his wife, Elizabeth, see various speech therapists with no success until Elizabeth finds Lionel Logue, an Australian self-taught therapist.
Elizabeth tells him that her husband has a terrible stammer and is required to speak in public, to which Lionel says, “Perhaps he should change jobs.”
Elizabeth tells Lionel that her husband cannot change jobs and then reveals her husband’s identity by saying, “And what if my husband were the Duke of York?”
Lionel’s methods are controversial, he and the duke must treat each other as equals, and all sessions must take place in Lionel’s rooms–no exceptions.
When King George V dies, Bertie’s older brother, David, becomes king, but he shirks his duties and doesn’t want to be king if he can’t marry the woman he loves, which he can’t, because she is twice divorced, and as head of the Church of England, the king cannot marry a divorced woman.
And, of course, the winds of war are increasing in Europe, and when England declares war with Germany, the new king, that is to say our old Bertie, must be able to give a stirring speech on live radio to the British people.
THE KING’S SPEECH is an excellent film all around of Bertie’s greatest test.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“The Next Three Days” One Terrific Thrill Ride
Nov 25th
“One Terrific Thrill Ride”
THE NEXT THREE DAYS is an exciting thriller that has you on the edge of your seat trying to guess what happens next and wondering if it is going to turn out the way you want it to.
Now, if you heard that it’s about a married couple in Pittsburgh, he’s a college professor and she’s his wife, you would probably pass on seeing it, right?
Right, but you would be wrong.
Russell Crowe plays John, Elizabeth Banks plays Lara, and they are anything but ordinary.
You see, three years earlier Lara was arrested, tried, and convicted of murdering her boss in a parking garage, but we don’t know if she did it and John is convinced that she couldn’t have done it.
In fact, when he and their son Luke visit her in jail, John tells her, “Everything is going to be all right. I promise.”
And then begins the extraordinary part of the story in which this mild-mannered college professor begins to figure out a plan in which he can break Lara out of prison, because all their appeals have failed.
First, he begins with an expert, Damon Pennington, played by Liam Neeson, who tells John in a wonderful scene that escaping from prison is easy, but the hardest part is staying free. He also tells John that Pittsburgh is “tough” and gives John exact details about what the authorities will do once someone breaks out of prison.
Naturally, John runs into difficulty acquiring the fake IDs he needs, as well as obtaining enough money to live on for five to six years.
In addition, John might be being watched by the police, and he can’t tell Lara about his plan, because he knows that she wouldn’t agree to it.
And then once the breakout occurs, the movie turns into one exciting scene after another, and it couldn’t get any more exciting.
A major hitch in John’s plans comes up, the story gets tighter, time is running out, and then a shock to end all shocks occurs, and it still isn’t over.
You ask yourself how you want it to end, and then there are some very nice touches at the end.
THE NEXT THREE DAYS is one terrific thrill ride without anything being blown up that keeps you guessing all the way to the end.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“Babies” Baby’s Home Movies
May 12th
Baby’s Home Movies
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
BABIES is an interesting, sometimes amusing, sometimes fascinating documentary that follows four babies from around the world during the first year of their lives.
The four babies are Ponijao in Namibia, Africa; Bayarjargal in Mongolia; Mari in Tokyo, Japan; and Hattie in San Francisco.
There is no narration, very little dialogue, none of which is translated, and only a few titles to tell us the names of the babies and where they were born.
In other words, this movie is like four sets of home movies called “Baby’s First Year.” On the other hand, who can resist seeing pictures of a sleeping, yawning baby?
We first meet Ponijao in Namibia. She and a sibling are pounding rocks together, and then they get into a fight over an old bottle, which results in some biting and crying. A title says “A few months earlier,” and we see Ponijao’s mother giving birth to her.
We cut to Mongolia and see a pregnant woman exercising in front of a television set while an exercise program is playing, and then later she gives birth to Bayarjargal. A nurse wraps him up tightly, and he is driven home on the back of a motorcycle in his mother’s arms behind his father and young brother.
Tokyo is next, and we see baby Mari while she is feeding, and a cat comes in and joins her.
Finally, we are in San Francisco, where we meet Hattie, and from here on the movie doesn’t show the four babies in order anymore, but instead shows different scenes in the lives of the babies and their activities in their first year.
Consequently, we see the similarities of raising a baby around the world, but we also see the differences, as well as the interesting differences in the four cultures that are represented.
All babies are given baths, but there are differences in the techniques.
All babies have animals in their lives, but there is a vast difference in what those animals are.
And all babies explore their body parts, but there are differences in what they wear, what toys they are given to play with, and how their parents try to amuse them to keep them from becoming bored.
BABIES is “Baby’s Home Movies,” yes, but who can resist babies, who are adorable no matter where they live?
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
