Door's Howl review: A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

Synopsis

When I started watching this movie I thought it was a story about Mr Rogers. And it is...sort of. I also thought it was going to be a manifesto on kindness...and it is...sort of. What it actually is, is an episode of Mr Roger's Neighborhood tv show shot in a movie form. It deals with anger, and kindness and real events in the life of Mr Rogers.

The movie, based loosely on an Esquire article, chronicles the attempt to interview Mr Rogers by a hard hitting (some would say mean spirited) investigative journalist. As the story progresses, we learn of the reporter's failed relationship with his father who is dying. Real life events of Mr Rogers, retold for the movie, are captured in different settings or similar settings: people singing the theme song on the subway, the moment of silence for all those who have loved us into being.

As we watched the movie as a family, something interesting happened. What had been a chaotic night, with heightened tensions and raised voices, became a setting of serene calm and peace. The quietness of Tom Hanks portrayal of Mr Rogers, the pace of the movie, the rhythmic soundtrack and the power of the story all led to a dramatic change in our home.

As we begin the next period of school closings, social distancing and forced or self quarantines as a society, I think this movie has something to say to us: make people feel loved today. Express kindness, share love, pass on hope. And here's what I am seeing: more and more people are using the power of social media to provide support and help to each other. Offering help with rides, meals and food support for those in need, gratitude and care are growing in abundance.

Keep bringing the best of us out and Mr Roger's dream of a society wide neighborhood of care and love might just come true. Well done all...let's keep at it.

Score

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood scores a New Moon.

Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Door's Howl: Theater Review - Framingham High School - Les Miserable

Photo by Dorian Botsis on iPhone

Review

Les Miserable is an iconic book, drama, musical, movie and school play. I have seen multiple versions of it. Redemption, love, justice, war, poverty, greed, and sacrifice fill its plot lines. People who know the show all have their favorite characters. Mine is Fantine. Without fail her story breaks my heart, and I can seldom get through her song "I dreamed a dream" without crying. 

Tonight, I watched Framingham High School's production, and it was simply spectacular. From choreography to voices to orchestra to stage design to interpretation it was astounding and beautiful. The surprise of the night for me was Javert, played by Ethan Kerr. I have never liked Javert as a character and his songs are difficult to sing and always seem to jar with me. Ethan did them better than I have ever heard them and for the first time ever, I enjoyed them. More than enjoyed them, I felt the soul of them. His final song was sung with such passion I could see the confusion and despair Javert must have felt. Well done Ethan! That was amazing.

All that said, it should be no surprise based on my opening paragraph, that Fantine was my favorite. Fantine was played by Hannah Bossange and she captured every ounce of the desperation, pain and longing of this character. Her version of "I Dreamed a Dream" had tears rolling down my eyes. Tears at the pain and hurt and deep, deep longing for hope and love. She sings something we all want. Hannah, you may never read this, but you moved my heart tonight. You sang with depth and wonder. Beautiful! But there was one more surprise, the close of the play when Jean Valjean and Fantine sing together was so powerful. Jan Valjean played by Max Connor was brilliant. His falsetto was magical and offered a divine air to his songs.

Les Miserable is a great school production because it touches on such deep themes. Watching school productions is also so incredible. There is such support from the audience and when each song finishes, the audience erupts with cheers and screams. Tonight, the audience burst with sound after each song and sprang to their feet in a standing ovation.

Well done Framingham High School Drama Company. That was incredible. What a great night out.

I don't know if it recorded and available for sale, but if it is, get a copy.

Score

FHS Drama Company Presents Les Miserable scores a Full Moon.

Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker: A Door's Howl Review (No Specific Spoilers)

Photo by Agnieszka Kowalczyk on Unsplash

Door's Howl Review: Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of Skywalker

A spoiler alert: I have tried to write this review without any specific spoilers, especially of movie plot lines. However, I do reference generalized thoughts and directorial decisions which may be viewed by some as spoilers. Therefore, move ahead under caution.

Synopsis

It is the last of the Star Wars main story arc movies. Faced with outrage from the Episode VIII poor performance (at least to purists), J.J. Abrams returns as director. The movie is fast paced with typical humor inserted elements for which Abrams is known. It pays homage to past characters, past battles and even revisits planets and scenes from previous movies.

As I said, it is fast paced. The movie is 2h21m, and doesn't let up in action all the way through. At times it feels squeezed and everything is being crammed into a predetermined time limit. It possibly could have benefitted from an extra 20 minutes. We follow the resistance across the galaxy as they fight the First Order and once again we see the two sides of the force at war.

I found the movie choppy and rushed and personally didn't think it was good. On the other hand, my family all loved it and thought it was great. Perhaps this is what happens with a movie arc that is 42 years long. Star Wars is a movie for kids, and the kid within us. It's fantastic, spectacular and amazing, but when you engage your disbelief, it kind of fails. Perhaps my own joy would have increased with a more emphatic audience (no cheers, no celebration, no shock, just...silence...even at the end with a muted smattering of applause led by one of my own children, which never went further than that). Maybe, it is better than I thought. You be your own judge.

There was one phrase, that repeats throughout the movie that seemed to be a prophetic challenge to the ordinary person: there are more of us than they want you to think there are. We are not victims and at the mercy of armies, tyrants and leaders...we have power...together. This was a moment worth cheering for in the movie (but alas...our audience was quiet)! I found this little piece of commentary on our times well done and powerfully displayed. We can always resist evil, and there are more good people than bad...we just need to realize we are not alone.

Perhaps I need to see it again to get a better experience!

As IMDB stated for the plot line: the resistance faces the First Order in the final chapter of the Skywalker Saga.

That sums it up quite well.

I hope you go and enjoy it!

P.S. I am sure Lego will make another small fortune off the figures and models from this movie...there are tons!

Score

Episode IX scores a New Moon.

Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Tom Selleck and Japanese Culture

Door's Howl Review: Mr Baseball

Synopsis

It's an old movie (1992) intended to be a comedy that plays off cultural and racial stereotypes of both Japanese and Americans. It probably would be viewed as offensive today. But it has something to offer. It certainly helped me.

Jack Elliot (Tom Selleck) is an aging baseball player in a slump. He is traded from the Yankees to the Dragons (a Japanese baseball team). What follows is a period of expected humorous interactions related to cultural arrogance, misunderstanding and conflict. It is a comedy, romantic at times and sporty at times.

But for me personally, when I first watched it, and then rewatched again and again, it taught me about the complexity, sophistication, and stunning beauty of Japanese culture. It taught me about learning my own cultural blindspots and how to learn from another culture. It showed me what could be possible when we attempt to get along. Perhaps this 1992 movie has some 2020 relevance.

As the movie progresses Jack Elliot learns about his own deficiencies, incorporates his learning of Japanese culture into his worldview while at the same time his coach learns to adopt some American culture. It's a synthesis of cultural learning and worth watching.

As a side note, there is a lot of push back today about cultural appropriation (or misappropriation). I don't believe Mr Baseball does that. Instead, what I see is cultural assimilation where both sides learn from each other and emerge stronger and better because of it. Today it would be filmed and edited differently of course, but it was a great help to me learning how to approach other cultures.

Score

Mr Baseball scores a Crescent Moon.

Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Door's Howl Review: Raising Dion

We just started watching a new show as a family: well, one child is 6 episodes in, another is one episode in with me and the other parent isn't watching at all - so yeah - the "family" is watching it!

Raising Dion is about a young elementary aged kid who discovers he has super powers. Like all origin stories, he has one parent, the other has died and his powers are developing in preparation to save a world catastrophe. But the way the season is shot, the music, the characters are quite different and beautifully done. The pace is unhurried and is interested in character development beyond the super hero. The story gives a wonderful insight into parenting, life and relationships in the modern world.

Check it out! Raising Dion, a Netflix show. I'll let you know more as a I see more episodes.

Door's Howl: MockingJay 2

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2

Synopsis

The final installment of the Hunger Games trilogy (quadrilogy for the moneymakers!) meets, exceeds and fails to meet expectations. Just like the book, the movie is filled with surprised that are not expected. Katniss Everdeen faces her biggest challenges yet in this installment (the choice between two love interests, the choice between two authority systems and the choice about her role in the war to name a few). The Hunger Games series intrigued me from the first movie. I read all the books and then watched the following installments of movies. They were all good in their own way.

This final installment is slow...painfully slow at times. The beauty of the movie is found in its constant dashing of hope and the sheer unwillingness of Katniss to accept despair. Katniss is faced with choice after choice and her choices give the movie its up and down feeling. Her ability to fight is powerful, and keeps you engaged. Sadly, I think the movie would have been better as one movie with the first part of Mockingjay as this installment could have been much shorter. The other characters seem by-products in this movie with little development paid to each of them. Additionally, each step of the way heroes become villainous and villains become heroic. This is part of the Hunger Games meta-narrative.

The main actors each perform powerful roles. Jennifer Lawrence is excellent as Katniss and Josh Hutcherson carried the Peeta role well. The others have little to work with and their screen time and lines are sporadic and disjointed.

You find the depth and surprises of Mockingjay Part 2 in little lines interspersed throughout the movie. They are said without fanfare, but if picked up, speak volumes about the movie. The obvious ones are about truth and lies (everyone lies to Katniss in some way...except Peeta who uses Katniss as the means to tell what is real or not). The Hunger Games and reality tv metaphor continues as does the larger discussion of what a free vote is. Katniss's choices right to the end make the movie powerful and sad, especially her last choice with Peeta. Less noticed lines like "If you die, let it be for a cause, not a spectacle" is powerful. Said in what might be a throwaway speech, it becomes a consistent metaphor right to the final speech of President Coin who announces the death of President Snow as more than a spectacle.

In the end the whole thing is a spectacle as all Katniss has ever wanted is to enjoy a peaceful life. Something each of us wants...and this for me is the most powerful metaphor. We are all Katniss (or at least we want to be)...courageous in volunteering to save others, skillful in our fights, looking for love, trying to avoid being a symbol for a political party, but entering the fight when we must and in the end wanting to raise our families in peace and quiet.

Her final line leaves us with the question that needs answering, as she speaks of nightmares she says, "Did you have a nightmare? I have nightmares too. Someday I'll explain it to you. Why they came? Why they won't ever go away? But I'll tell you how to survive it. I make a list in my head, of all the good things I've seen someone do. Every little thing I could remember. It's like a game. I do it over and over. Gets a little tedious after all these years, but there are much worse games to place."

Her solution to the nightmares is a game...what is ours to the nightmares of our time. And echoing in the back is the statement about death...die for a cause not a spectacle.

Score

Mockingjay Part 2 scores a Crescent Moon. The Hunger Games Series is a New Moon.

Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Door's Howl: Jurassic World

Synopsis

Jurassic World is the fourth installment in the Jurassic franchise. The movie pulled no punches in trying to be cutting edge and sci-fi like.  From rides of rolling spheres to holographic images it was a dive into theme parks of the future...with a little bit of horror. The story follows the ongoing Jurassic debate about genetic manipulation, corporate greed, science and ethics.  This installment even threw in the tried and true evil military applications. It's a long movie filled with action sequences. I saw the 3D version, but it doesn't really add much. Chris Pratt continues to move into the most sought after actor spot delivering a solid performance. Rumor has it, he's already signed for a 5th and 6th installment.  Bryce Dallas Howard plays the female lead, although the decisions about her wardrobe, hair and makeup reminded me of a plastic doll rather than a person. Her performance was not robotic but the context of her dress, makeup and corporate management role left her too distant to connect to in the movie.

Throughout the movie there are homages to the original franchise, (the raptor claw being dug up, the aviary dome, the raptors, the T-Rex and more). The movie is a good night out and worth seeing...but then, it's already the #1 movie in the States right now!

On a side note, its worth checking out AMC's Dine In Theaters.  Same price as a normal ticket, but with servers bringing you food (good food with a wide range from burgers, to tacos, to salads) and drinks. Seats are recliners with automated footrests and back adjusters.  

Score
Jurassic World scores a new moon
Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and/or buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!

Door's Howl: Divergent

Divergent

Synopsis

Yet another one in the realm of young adult books becoming movies hoping to make millions. And it has so far, with the second coming later this month (Insurgent) and the third being split into two movies for 2016 and 2017. I did not see this in the theater, but the Insurgent trailer looked interesting and so I got it on DVD. I enjoyed it,

Divergent is about a dystopian future where people are forced into factions based on 5 foundational virtues. It's kind of an extreme life deciding personality test with a career path, home life and community decided for you. Yet the hero in the show emerges as a "rare" divergent, someone who is motivated by more than one of the virtues. She is rare, different and therefore does not fit in. By the end of the movie divergents seem to be far less rare, so that leaves one wondering why this is the first time it happens, but that's the movies for you. In the end, the introductory movie sets up the battle for the future much like Hunger Games, Maze Runner, Twilight and a host of other trilogy movies aspires to do. I think the series will do well and I certainly will be watching the rest...but probably from the comfort of my home than the theater.

The movie commits many movie mistakes (I think CinemaSins would have a field day with it) but overall the movie is good, the story line engaging and the cast good. Shailene Woodley does a great job in this role and is well supported by a new upcoming cadre of actors who will replace the current A-list for sure. But for now, they are new and growing.

ScoreDivergent scores a Crescent Moon.Scoring System

Wolves are thought to commonly howl at the moon. So, the better the moon, the greater the howl. Description of scoring system below.

Full Moon - best you can get, must watch and must own
New Moon - great movie, worth seeing and buying
Crescent Moon - average to above average, good to watch, but may want to wait for DVD
Sliver Moon - below average, not worth seeing and only get it on DVD when you have nothing better to do, like having a root canal
Moonless Night -not even worth mentioning - avoid at all costs!