COLUMBUS

I doubt that I will see a better movie than COLUMBUS this year. If you favor a lot of action, a big cast, noise, this probably isn't for you. But if you like quiet movies about the small moments in lives, you may like it too.
COLUMBUS takes place in Columbus, IN, rated the sixth best architectural place to visit in the U.S. and it is only a town of 40,000. All of the best modernist architects have buildings here and the movie makes good use of them. The two main characters, a girl of 20 (Haley Lu Richardson) and an older Korean-American (John Cho) are dealing with parent issues. But what makes the movie work so well is how their stories make use of the elements of architecture. Scenes are shot through windows, mirrors, doors, and only occasionally does it call direct attention to that. Hallways become an interesting way of showing distance. Their shared passion for architecture can only take them so far though. Such a beautiful movie. Directed by Kogonada, I think his name will become more familiar.

Saturday Night Music

Friday Night Music

Friday's Forgotten Books, September 22, 2017

Todd Mason will have the links right here.

Thursday Music

Wednesday Music

Forgotten Movies; GHOST STORY

This was a bit of a disappointment.I am not sure why the story seemed laid out poorly. And the acting was strange. Especially Craig Wasson, whose acting style didn't jibe at all with the four older actors. I loved the book and think if I read it again now I would still like it because there are good bones here. I think the direction is poor too. Perhaps the limitations of four elderly men impeded it as well. Also there was an awful lot of story to be told.
In summary: Four successful elderly gentlemen, members of the Chowder Society, share a gruesome, 50-year old secret. When one of Edward Wanderley's twin sons dies in a bizarre accident, the group begins to see a pattern of frightening events developing.
Read the book, skip the movie.

Monday Night Music

Things That Make Me Happy

A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW, I struggled to get into this. Some books require a deeper focus than I have had lately to appreciate their worth. And this was one of them. But now I "get" it and am really enjoying it. The beauty of the prose and the deep rendering of a character and place really hooked me.

Really enjoyed watching Kevin perform with his Monday night School of Rock group. Amazing to see these elementary school kids, sing, keyboard, play drums and guitar. They have so much stage presence already. And they all love it. They performed at a bar at noon, which was an odd experience but the stage and lighting was terrific.

Enjoyed the first episode of THE DEUCE. We had some friends over and they didn't get it at all. Their only TV watching is sports, news and Downton Abbey. They also don't read novels. They have trouble with narrative and they have no historical context for what a show like this is trying to do. So they were mystified, but we loved it. 

The weather still rocks. Our new sprinkler system is keeping our lawn florescent green despite the lack of rain.

Phil has had the cataracts removed from both eyes. Glad that is over with. Certainly the year for doctors. Hope we get some respite from it.

What about you?