by Sam Juliano
As a monster blizzard bears down the NYC region (those in the midwest have been seeing this kind of weather right along) weather forecasts are calling for upward of two feet of snow on Tuesday and Wednesday. Hence most of the upcoming week will be one of digging out. I can only imagine and dread what my friend John Grant will be getting up in his West Milford area abode. certainly snow lovers will get all their fill and way more than that.
This past week has been spent home writing the final wave of Caldecott book reviews, and recovering from the final stage of a once terrible stomach virus, and continued depression over our unconscionable loss of a few weeks ago, a loss I am still in denial over. In a rare occurrence, no new films were seen, though this is traditionally the worst time of the year for quality openings, what with all the attention paid on the Oscar nominees. I do look forward to the Academy Award live action and animated shorts and to the documentary shorts.
Hence I particularly look forward to hearing what others have seen or done.
Stay safe in the snow, Sam. I admit – as long as the power stays on (and it usually does in the city), I like a good storm, bigger the better. But that’s a privilege of living somewhere with well placed underground powerlines, and in an apartment where they hire people to shovel the stuff…
Not a bad weekend for movies up here, since we got some of the notable 2014 releases – Two Days One Night finally showed up, and I got to Selma this week.
You have a very good point there Stephen. There is something about a snowstorm that captivates me too, and I’ll pretty much felt that way through my entire life. The aftermath though is not always so pleasant. Ha! But of course the kids are excited about the day off from school tomorrow, and possibly even again on Wednesday. I will definitely be looking at THE LISTENING EAR for a response to SELMA and the Dardennes film. Thanks so much my friend. I know you will be in the white even more than us in the coming hours. Safety first my friend.
Aaargh! Thanks for the storm warning, Sam! Somehow my inhouse meteorologist had missed this, but she has now discovered that the Beeb’s calling it a “potentially historic blizzard.” In our area we have above-ground power lines, Third World-style, so we’re stocking up on firewood, batteries, etc.
Of course, it would be that my current task is to try to finish the penultimate draft of this [RETRACTED] book by the weekend . . .
Good luck yourself in the drifts!
I like that John—-your “in-house meteorologist!” Ha! Yes some are indeed framing it as historic, in that there are some who are saying it will break records. However in the last few hours the general estimates are coming in a bit less than they had originally anticipated, so it won’t be breaking records, but will still be quite formidable to say the least. The homebound hours will indeed give you opportunity to complete some writing. I wisely held on to the picture book BLIZZARD by John Rocco, which I will be reviewing tonight myself. Stay warm both of you!
Stay safe and warm, Sam!!!
Thanks Pat!!! We are all in now, as it rages outside!!
That is a lot of snow Sam! Remember to take the shovelling in small stages to avoid injury. We have just finished dip with a run of heavy rain and I am looking forward to what was forecast to be a rather pleasant day today. The weekend has been spent in Vancouver visiting with David’s second daughter who is due to have a baby mid April. We also spent a bit of time with his youngest son and I saw my son for a couple of hours as well. So lots of family time and it was really good.
We have seen a few movies but the one that stands out is a really difficult watch and my not be what you want to see with your recent loss – not that there is any real connection other than loss itself. The film is “As I lay Dying” (2013) directed by James Franco and based on a book by William Faulkner. What I think surprise the most about this fill was how with its raw brutally difficult circumstances and interactions I stayed in a place of conflicting empathy for all of the characters – even the father who I wanted desperately to dislike and blame. Anyway, I will say no more so not to set expectations or spoil the impact of this emotionally complex story.
Take good care Sam and all the best to everyone here at Wonders in the Dark.
Aye Terrill. Well more than we need to take advantage of the scenic wonderments associated with this otherwise crippling event. This is actually the first real snow we have gotten this winter, aside from a light fall a few days ago. That is wise advice on the snow shoveling. Sounds like time well invested in Vancouver with your lovely family. Since I first made friends with you I know there have been several pregnancies–the best times ever. I have not seen that James Franco film, but I have read Faulkner’s novel!! I think I missed it because of bad reviews, but I should never makes any assumptions, especially with your seeming stellar reaction. You do make some points I will remember when I get to see it. Thanks so much Terrill, have a fabulous week!!
I didn’t notice its bad reviews Sam until after I watched the film. I happened to like the use of a split screen and the text that was read into the film so these more artistic tools served me well in being able to appreciate the complexity of the movie. The subject is however a hard watch as you will appreciate from having read the book. This by itself may have contributed to the lower rating than I would have expected in reviews. But if you made it through the book I am sure you will appreciate the film.
Terrill—your reasonably favorable response has made my mind up as to seeing it. So true what you say about getting through the cryptic nature of the book–typically for Faulkner–I will tackle it soon!!
I’m hearing two feet at last report. But right now all is quiet out there. It won’t be starting for several more hours. Stay safe!
We’ve got about 7cm-8cm so far, with the main fall, anywhere up to a meter, expected this evening and through the night.
Well Peter, it has started up and doesn’t look like it will let up until it is all done sometime late tomorrow afternoon. As Professor Marvel said in THE WIZARD OF OZ it’s a whopper!!!
John—Your number look like they are right on the money from what I have heard too. get those snow shovels ready!! 🙂
We may not get what they originally called for. But either way this will be a major event.
Yes it will be indeed Frank! It has started as I write. At least I saved one of the year’s best picture book, (BLIZZARD) for the right evening. I will be posting it tonight!! 🙂
Sam, shocked to read about the snow you will be getting. We have been enjoying rare +15 deg C temp which is rare for this time of the year. Although, we had blasts of snow as early as September, so likely a correction is happening. But stay warm and take care shoveling.
And your continued work on the book series is incredible. I have no idea how you find the time and energy. I have been keeping track of some titles for future buys.
And Sam, I echo Terrill’s words regarding that you should take your time to shovel the snow. I speak from painful experience that no matter how angry you feel at the snow and how much there is, don’t rush it.
Sachin, as it turns out the forecasters were way, way off the mark. I love snow, but not in crippling quantities. The reading in central Park was 7 inches, and over here in nearby northeastern New Jersey we may have gotten one more inch at most. Apparently the storm hovered further east, sparing the Mew York City region from what some said at one point would be a historic blizzard. It turned out to be just a moderate winter storm. We got ONE-THIRD of what they were calling for. At least the digging out won’t be especially difficult.
Thanks so much for the much appreciated kind words on the book series, which has admittedly been taking my time in a big way since November. There are a good number of these books you’d really appreciate!! Thanks too for the concern over the snow-shoveling. Luckily the kids are there in force to help out! Have a great week my friend!!
Stay put, be safe, be healthy and happiness Sam!
To entertain your house stay, I shall talk about the movies I saw last week:
– Dark Summer (2015, Paul Solet) ** Heuhg no.
– The Imitation Game (2014, Morten Tyldum) ***1/2 Being a complete ignorant usually helps with movies like these. I had no idea what had actually happened to Turing after Enigma and how did he die, and the way that it happened shook me to the core. I must say that this movie is mostly harmless and swifts by quite quickly for a movie that is almost two hours long and in which almost nothing happens. Quite avant garde if I’d say so myself. The process of the machine itself weren’t as interesting as the processes of his own personal life, and I think that’s what made this kinda lacking in the end, as the early youth scenes, while cliched, packed an emotional punch that was stronger than when they win the war.
– Inherent Vice (2014, Paul Thomas Anderson) ****1/2 I don’t know if it’s the novel or not, but I had no trouble following the plot. And I don’t know what it is, but I think there’s a lot to tackle here and I just can’t wait to revisit this again, just to see if this goes up the last notch it needs for it to be the masterpiece that I’m sure it is.
– The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013, Isao Takahata) ****1/2 What an incredible little masterpiece of art. Moving and filled with that attention to detail that every Ghibli film has that will leave you thinking that animation must be the only thing that should ever be made into film. This story, based on a classic Japanese legend, is so simple and yet at the same time manages to extend itself well beyond what one could assume is its natural course, that you are left surprised at the quality of the animation (not the usual Ghibli style) and the quality of the emotions that are put there, in these simple and myth-like characters. It’s a sad story that when it ends it feels fitting, even if heartbreaking.
– Leviathan (2014, Andrey Zvyagintsev) ****1/2 Ways to simplify a great movie and thus say that it’s not accomplished:
· The Russian government is corrupt! And how!
· Christian/Biblical Allegory!
This film is so much more than that, it’s more than anything a heartbreaking family drama that features some insightful commentary on the masculinity and its decreasing role in the modern society. This is, at times, like a better trial and execution on the male genre and masculinity than ‘Force Majeure’, as here there’s no redemption, just the constant death of anything that what was once the established, just to be replaced not with a surge of the feminity that overrides everything, but with a robotic conservative view that ends in the total thought control. “Jesus sees all”.
– La Once (Tea Time) (2014, Maite Alberdi) **** Chilean documentary, great times and lots of laughter. A review should be on a site sometime.
– Li’l Quinquin (2014, Bruno Dumont) ****1/2 I’ve been thinking for the past 20 minutes what my favorite ‘moment’ of this ‘film’ is. I can’t think of anything, because it’s truly a project, an entity, something that is beyond what anything could think of, so solidified in itself, so compact (even at almost 4 hours) that I can’t isolate one moment from the next, it all works together. And it isn’t as if every little thing was perfect (there were some scenes that while supported the sense of the absurd atmosphere of the ‘film’, in the context of the experience I had, watching the 4 episodes in a row, some were tiring and could’ve been cut out… but only in that context, I guess nothing could really be cut from this incredible thing).
– Sleepless Nights Stories (2011, Jonas Mekas) **** Camcorder digital is indistinguishable from Super 8mm.
– Smog Journeys (2015, Jia Zhang Ke) **** Short documentary about smog in China. Beautiful in its own way.
– The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death (2014, Tom Harper) *** Will write a review for this, so I should just write a couple of notes:
· This movie lies way too heavily on jump scares, and the first one, while not a classic, relied much more on the atmosphere and in the scary presence of the woman in black, that in this movie turns into some kind of Jason Vorhees.
· I love the fact that this is practically a children slasher, kids get killed left and right because that’s what our monster does.
· I’ve seen many people complain about the cinematography, that I really think was the best thing that this movie had.
That’s all, have a great week Sam!
Sam, hope you, your family and everyone in the NE are safe and warm during this storm.
On the film front…
Cake (***) Jennifer Aniston stands out giving a very credible performance as a woman suffering from severe chronic pain after a terrible accident. There’s a nice chemistry in the scenes between her and Adrianna Baraza who is effective as Aniston’s housekeeper and friend.
Mr. Turner (****1/2) Timothy Spall’s marvelous performance sucks you into the world of William Turner. Mike Leigh and his cinematographer Dick Pope bring you into a world, long gone. A mesmerizing character study of a great artist and sometimes ugly human being.
You Can’t Take it with You (****) Entertaining and well done story of when an eccentric family meets corporate America. Well-acted by James Stewart, Jean Arthur and Lionel Barrymore backed by a wonderful cast of supporting actors including Edward Arnold, Spring Byington, Ann Miller, Dub Taylor, Donald Meek and Charles Lane.
The Broken Land (**) Notable for an early appearance by Jack Nicholson. Unique for having its “star,” Kent Taylor, as an unscrupulous marshal who runs the town by his own rules. Everything else about the film spirals in a downhill direction. Weak script, characters are poorly developed. Strictly for anyone wanting to catch early Jack.
Stay safe!
Sam, it sounds from the news and your comments above as if the snow in New Jersey is not as deep as it was expected to be – though we’d think 8 inches or so was a major snowfall in the UK, I must say. Hope you are keeping warm, anyway.
I’ve managed to see a few films recently – I saw ‘Man with a Movie Camera’ on the big screen at Ipswich Film Society last night, which was exciting as I’d previously only seen it on the computer… no comparison! I also recently caught up with ‘Love Story’ (left a comment on your review of that one) which I really liked, more than I remembered from my youth.
Also I’ve watched a couple of early three-strip Technicolor films, ‘The Garden of Allah’ with Marlene Dietrich, which looks wonderful although the story is rather too rushed, and ‘Becky Sharp’ with Miriam Hopkins, which I saw in a rather dodgy print unfortunately – anyway I wrote about that one for a Hopkins blogathon.
Anyway, Sam, take care, and I hope to catch up with some of your book reviews soon – you have been doing an amazing job there.
Hey Sam what were the totals by your place? I’m sure you all have made it through no doubt as I don’t think NJ had as much as Massachusetts had. It’s been an exhausting week at work with also the kids under the weather this week with sore throats and coughs and people waking up at night. Tis the season for being sick. I do hope you are feeling better soon. This week I rewatched Casablanca on BluRay as she wanted to see it again. That’s a film you can never get enough of. Also took in Forbidden Games for the first time in years. It’s quite unsettling. I also watched the new BluRay of Demy’s Lola. It has been years since seeing that one as well. I don’t think I’d put it anywhere near Demy’s top films. It’s a bit more reliant on cliche’s and usual tropes than Demy’s most imaginative works. Donkey Skin has such an odd appeal that sticks with you. So does The Young Girls of Rochefort which is colorful and charming and of course the masterpieces Bay of Angels and The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.
Hope you’ve dug out of the snow my friend!
Sam, I apologize for my late reply. I have been on the road a good bit of late (actually on a flight home as I write).
I hope this finds you well. You have been in my thoughts during what I know has been one of the most challenging periods you have ever faced.
I continue to focus mostly on becoming a little more fluent in the world of television. I recently completed the entirety of The Wire and am now looking to do the same with Breaking Bad. I must say I was extraodinarily impressed by the Chase show. I cannot believe how consistently high level the writing and directing were for what amounts to about 60 hours.
Hope you are having a great week. Thanks so much, Sam, for continuing to maintain what is one of my favorite sites in the entire blogosphere!
Your continued loyalty, support, humility, positive vibes and sponsorship leaves me practically speechless Jeffrey! And to get to this posts and others while on a flight is just incredible. I can never repay you for this, and hope to meet you one day!! I also saw THE WIRE and BREAKING BAD at around the same time, both are certainly iconic shows, but I do prefer the latter myself. Still, both have fervent fans, and both can be backed up to the hilt. You are watching some engrossing stuff there!! Thanks again my great friend!! Have a fabulous week!