Summer of Soul (..., Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)

Hero

HST is one of my heroes. This is a great movie about him, his passion, and those heady days of my generation in the late 1960s-70s. This movie captures the excitement, the struggle and the hope of those days. 

Thompson was a true patriot. George W. Bush killed him. We can only imagine his views on Donald Trump and what Trumpism says about America and the American Dream. 

I wish that he could have stood it and was here to put his words to the frustration, fear, loathing and lost hope we have felt since Trump's emergence as a force in the Republican Party. Nobody could do it better.

More NYC Stories - Pretend It's A City

Freak Power: The Ballot or the Bomb

Rumble - The Indians Who Rocked the World

I thought I knew a lot about rock and roll until I saw this great movie.  I learned a lot of good stuff from this movie!

Raqqa Being Slaughtered Silently

Look for City of Ghosts at your local independent film/arts cinema.  It is a movie about an underground citizens journalist in Raqqa, Syria with the internet name of RBSS (“Raqqa Being Slaughtered Silently”) using the internet to get the word out about ISIS and ISIS atrocities in Raqqa.

This movie should be shown in every U.S high school classroom for a wide variety of reasons.  Maybe it will make the multitudes of ill-informed American Christians understand that it isn’t them against us but primarily them against them. Maybe, that will generate some compassion for the poor people caught in the middle.

Maudie - A Wonderful Movie

Maudie, a Canadian movie filmed in Newfoundland and Labrador, based on the real life story of the Nova Scotia folk artist Maude Lewis and her eccentric fish monger husband, is one of the best movies I have seen in a very long time.

The filming has stunning views of maritime Canada and Ethan Hawke and Sally Hawkins' performances were remarkable.

It is beautiful, sweet and touching story about two not-so-ordinary people, living simple lives outside the mainstream that find happiness in each other.  Bring kleenex.

FX's Fargo

Hopefully, some of you have watched the three seasons of FX's television version of Fargo.  If not, you should.

I just finished the third season and happy that I did.  Not as good as Season 2 with Kirsten Dunst but better than Season 1 with Billy Bob Thornton.  Kirsten Dunst is fabulous.

Each season features storied built around Minnesota crimes from the 1980s.  Great femme-fatales, life events turning people into criminals constantly dealing with unexpected circumstances and female detectives who figure things out only to be frustrated by dismissive bosses.  Some episodes are hard to watch, others made me laugh out loud.

Great New Netflix Series - Occupied

Yet Another Crime Fiction Blog, a mystery book blog that I subscribe to, posted a recommendation for a new series on Netflix called Occupied.

The series is based on a concept by mystery writer, Jo Nesbo.  It foresees a day in the near future when there is an energy crisis and Russia occupies Norway and takes over Norway's fossil fuel production capabilities.

I am just a couple of episodes into it and it is excellent.  If you have Netflix, you should check it out.

Straight Outta Compton - Go See It!!!!

20 Feet from Stardom - Go See This Movie, You Won't Regret It

I Shook Jeremy Scahill's Hand Today

I usually do not write things about me on this blog but today is different.  The movie based on Jeremy Scahill's book, Dirty Wars - The World is a Battlefield, opened this weekend and we went into to New York City to see it, and to see him in an question and answer session after it.  Each person who asked a question started with, "Mr. Scahiil - Thank you for your bravery.  I found myself crying through the entire movie  and my question is .  .  ."  I felt the same way.

It is a movie about the secret covert wars of Obama and the United States government and I recommend that everyone see it especially those of you worried about our country's future.  I for one remember the days 40 years ago when we were all shocked to learn that our government was involved in covert assassinations of individuals in foreign countries. Now not only is it common place but it is now done to American citizens, all in the guise of fighting terrorism, which may be true.  That said, how would we know if it is all secret.

We need more brave people like Jerry Scahill to remind us of the slippery slope that our country is sliding down in the name of fighting terrorism.  Let us not forget our values.  Support Jeremy Scahill.  See this movie and see it soon!

Searching for Sugar Man

     Searching for Sugar Man is a must-see movie.  Rotten Tomatos describes the plot as follows:

Searching for Sugar Man tells the incredible true story of Rodriguez, the greatest '70s rock icon who never was. Discovered in a Detroit bar in the late '60s by two celebrated producers struck by his soulful melodies and prophetic lyrics, they recorded an album which they believed would secure his reputation as the greatest recording artist of his generation. 

In fact, the album bombed and the singer disappeared into obscurity amid rumors of a gruesome on-stage suicide. But a bootleg recording found its way into apartheid South Africa and, over the next two decades, he became a phenomenon.

The film follows the story of two South African fans who set out to find out what really happened to their hero. Their investigation leads them to a story more extraordinary than any of the existing myths about the artist known as Rodriguez.

     It is a music movie that also deals with South Africa's struggle with aparteid, the dark side of the music business, the plight of the urban working poor and the beauty of humanity.  When it comes near you, go see it!!!

Lebanon - A Must-See Movie

If you are interested in a close-up view of war, particularly modern tank warfare, see this movie.  Lebanon is not a documentary, like Sebastian Junger's Restrepo, but it is somewhat autobiographical since it was written and directed by an Israeli tanker in Israel's 1982 war with Lebanon.  The New York Times did a good review of the movie on August 5, 2010 which begins as follows:

A scene early in “Lebanon” dramatizes the moral confusion of combat with unusual clarity and force. Shmulik (Yoav Donat), a nervous young Israeli soldier who operates the main gun in a tank, has orders to shoot a fast-approaching car. Through his viewfinder he can see the faces of the driver and passengers, and the fact of their humanity paralyzes his hand, preventing him from firing.  .  .  .

In a few seconds the young man’s ethical universe has been dismantled and replaced by a cruder set of imperatives: keep moving; do what you can to survive; obey orders; when in doubt, shoot to kill. This is an abstract way of summarizing something that has, partly because of the close and crowded space of the tank, an almost unbearable intimacy. “Lebanon” is meticulous, nearly clinical in its attention to what happens in war — specifically what happened in the first days of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982 — but it is also a palpably and intensely personal film. .  .  .  Read more.  .  .

Check this movie out.  Be aware, however, it is not easy to watch sometimes.  War is hell.

Gunnin' For That #1 Spot

If you like basketball, you need to rent Gunnin' For That #1 Spot, a 2008 movie about eight high school phenoms in 2005 who participated in a exhibition game at the Ruckers Park in Harlem, the most famous street basketball venue on the planet.

It is truly amazing how fast kids are developing basketball talent these days and how fast the shoe companies, colleges and the NBA are making them famous.  Most of these guys are either young stars in the NBA or you will be watching them in NCAA Tournament in the next couple of weeks.

Go online or your local DVD rental store and rent it.  If you like basketball, it is worth the watch.