What I Watched In May

 

This time I am better and am not late. Yesterday was my Birthday too so I did nuttin’ Honey! I just took today and Monday off and plan to enjoy my weekend. So let’s get the party started..

1. CAST AWAY-2000

Tom Hanks plays a, by the time, FedEx man who is the sole survivor of a plane wreck and lands on a deserted island. It’s quite good with some sad moments and funny ones too. Who knew Wilson could out act Helen Hunt? Well, that just says how much I like Helen Hunt…

2. DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS-1954

Victor Mature is the gladiator who was just trying to defend his gal when the mean centurions are trying to find the red robe Jesus wore at his crucifixion. This is a sequel to “The Robe” which I still have to see. To say Jay Robinson, as Caligula, overacts and devours the scenery is an understatement,

3. MR. HULOT’S HOLIDAY-1953

This is considered one of the best comedies ever made and it is very funny but in a more subtle way. Mr. Hulot’s is a sweet but bumbling Frenchman who drives his beat up old car to the seaside  staying at a small hotel with many other French people also on holiday. Antics ensure but not over the top, beat it on top of your head kind of way, but more subtle. I do find other movies funnier but I’m glad I saw this movie.

4. THE HITCHHIKER-1950

2 men go on a fishing trip, pick up a hitchhiker not knowing he is a crazed nut on the lamb. They find out but are at the loon’s mercy. Quite intense and a good direction from Ms. Ida Lupino who should be better recognized for her directing and not just her acting.

5. ALL THAT JAZZ-1979

Finally, I saw this somewhat autobiographical film of Bob Fosse, the alcoholic, drug addicted, constantly smoking, womanizing but brilliant dance man and director. It’s quite revealing and very sexual. Roy Scheider ( of Jaws fame) plays the lead and he deserved an Oscar, in my opinion. Ann Reinking, who had a long affair with Fosse, played the min lover in this film. It’s worth seeing.

6. THINGS WE LOST IN THE FIRE-2007

Halle Berry plays the wife of a good man who was murdered and Benicio Del Toro plays the best friend who has a major drug habit. She doesn’t like the friend but slowly they help each other out while dealing with the loss. Better than I thought it would be.

7. HOME OF THE BRAVE-2006

This movie really reminded me of the great film, “ The Best Years of Our Lives” which is about WW2 vets returning home and dealing with battle fatigue as it was called then. In this film they are returning from Iraq and must deal with PTSD. It’s sad but so good. Not as good as the original but worth a look.

8. THE LITTLE FOXES-1941

Great film starring Bette Davis as a vicious  maven of a rich family where she and her 2 brothers scheme to get more money but not sure how until her ailing husband comes back. She berates her husband mercilessly while her sweet daughter watches horrified at how mean her mother is. Great film made famous on the stage by Tallulah Bankhead but Bette does a such a great job as this viper. 

9. SOUTH SEA WOMAN-1953

A fun adventure WW2 yarn with Burt Lancaster and Chuck Connors as 2 Marine buddies and the gal who gets between their friendship, played by Virginia Mayo. I never thought I would see Burt dressed up in some freaky statue performing in a tribal dance. 

TV SHOWS

1. A SMALL LIGHT-2023

This is still playing on TV based on Anne Frank and her family but centred on their main protector, Miep Gies and her husband. We see how difficult it was to hide the families behind the bookcase as well as be part of the Dutch resistance. Knowing what happens makes it, always, sad but you applaud Miep, her husband and the others who risked their lives to save the Jewish people and fight against evil. These are the true heroes, not sports people.

2. LOST CAR RESCUE-2022-PRESENT

Hubby and I enjoy this Canadian show about young men, a woman pilot and an older hippie looking for cars left in the trees, bogs, water, in old sheds…you name it. What I love is that they are saving these heaps, cleaning up the environment and can see the potential in these cars. Of course, they must bargain for a good price and they usually win out. 

What did you watch in May?

Springtime MishMash

 

I have decided to keep doing Thursday Movie Picks, inspired by Wandering Through The Shelves, who has decided to scale back to a bi-weekly event. I just enjoy it so much and now that spring is definitely here and, this week it feels like mid summer all of a sudden. This is so typical in the area I live but I’m going stop being Canadian and stop talking about the weather:). I decided to choose 3 movies that take place during the spring time and here we go…

1. MAYTIME-1937

This is the first film I saw starring Jeannette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy, that operatic team that became famous for their formulaic romance films only to disappear a few short years later, their films not the actors. My teen girl heart just fell for this film about an operatic diva telling her young friend about her life and the man she loved. We see how she falls passionately for Nelson but feels loyalty to the man that has shaped her career, played by John Barrymore. You know I love the music and the pure schmaltz that are their films, but they belong to this time period, just before the war, during the Great Depression when you heard wonderful singing and saw some great costumes. Thanks, Joel, for reminding me of this film since you chose this in one of your previous comments. The last time I watched this, was with my former mom in law, who loved their movies and the more romantic the movie got, the more her crossed leg would move back in forth. I love that memory.

2. WENT THE DAY WELL-1942

About face! This takes place in a small,  quaint English village who welcome a group of men who seem nice, at first, until we and the villagers, realize all is not right in the early spring world. It turns out this group are nasty Germans who are invading England and no person is safe from their wrath. Time and again, the villagers try to get help to the outside only to get kiboshed in one form or another. This film was obviously made when World War 2 was going on but, thankfully, the threat of invasion was much, much less. This “what if” story is quite intriguing and one of the baddies is played by, be still my heart, David Farrar, whom I find very handsome and had, apparently, brilliant violet eyes. It’s a quirky film that is quite bold for its time.

3. FERRIS BEULLER’S DAY OFF-1986

Matthew Broderick became famous playing this devil may care high school kid who wakes up, notices what a beautiful spring day is out there, and decides to play hooky. He talks to us, breaking down that wall in film, while getting his hypochondriac best friend to play hooky with him. After getting his girlfriend out of school, the 3 enjoy the day while his sister, played by Jennifer Grey ( they were dating in real life) is steaming that her brother gets away with all this while people rally around the dying Ferris. The principal doesn’t believe Ferris is sick either and goes to great pains trying to locate him and get him expelled. It’s a fun flick directed by the great John Hughes who seems part of the 80s in so many ways. 

I was all over the place with my films but I stuck to Spring. What Spring movies can you think of?

Weekly Music Fest- In Memory

 

These are my dad’s medals from World War 2 and  they need a good clean and polish. My brother brought them because my hubby wants to create an art piece on my dad and he wanted to know what the medals were. ( hubby burns wood and..it’s amazing artistry but that’s for another day). Cathy, over at Curious as a Cathy and the co-host of Monday Music Moves Me was inspired by your Memorial Day. I thought this would be perfect for both my parents since they endured war, my dad as a soldier and my mom as a civilian on the German side…yes, the enemy. My mom could always speak to my dad who always said that war and the horrors of it showed no favourites. Considering my mom was part of the German Resistance and dealt with the Russians afterwards, I think she and her family qualifies.

1. DANNY BOY SUNG BY JOHN MCDERMOTT-2005

John McDermott is a Canadian institution who has a true and genuine appreciation of the soldier. He has sung this song more than once and I love it. I know my dad would have loved to have seen this singer and I was lucky to take my mom and my in-laws to see him. My mom was so overjoyed that she was on the edge of her seat singing with him albeit quietly. My ex’s dad  had a few tears in his eyes because this man knows how to celebrate the soldier. 

2. NEARER MY GOD TO THEE BY THE ANDRE RIOU ORCHESTRA-2020

Well, you all know my mom loved Andre Riou so I had to honour her with this beautiful piece often heard in conjunction with The Titanic since this was the last song played by the ship’s orchestra but Andre decided to play this in honour of the liberation of Holland by the Canadian and British forces of which my dad was a part of. 

3. TEARS IN HEAVEN SUNG BY ERIC CLAPTON-1991

This song was written by Clapton and Will Jennings when Clapton lost his 4 yr old son when his little boy fell from the 53rd floor window. I still shudder thinking about that day I heard of this tragedy but it’s also the first song that came into my mind because of my Uncle Joachim. My Uncle was born in October 1939 and was quite the surprise but loved so much. On December 13, 1940, my mom and her family were all outside when they heard a bomb dropping giving this whistling sound. They knew right away that it was the type of bomb that took the oxygen out of the air, for lack of a better word. Everyone knew to let all the air out of their lungs, bending down, hug their calves until the bomb exploded, all but little Uncle Joachim. My Oma had him in her lap and tried her best to have her son let his air out but it didn’t work. My mom, who was 12 at the time, remembered seeing her little brother slumped in her mom’s arms with blood coming out his mouth, ears, nose and eyes, dead, his lungs had collapsed. My mom said she remembered her mom trying to revive her son and after, for a month, all her mom, my Oma did, was wash his clothes, hang them up, iron them and put them away only to repeat the process. My Oma lost her youngest son to war and then, in 1945, lost her other youngest son, at age 19, to his war wounds along with 176 other young German soldiers in the hospital, on June 30th. Only a few Russian soldiers were left.  This story is one of thousands of mothers who have lost their sons so what better way than to pay tribute to all. 

For my mom and dad...

What I Watched in April

 

Am I a bit late? A bit!?!!  Oh yes, I’m very late with this because it’s lengthy but, I hope you enjoy. My hubby and I must be into war movies the last month as we watched a fair bit so here we go...

1. HART'S WAR- 2005

Set during WW2 in a POW camp starring Bruce Willis and Colin Farrell. Quite good because it's not just a war film but a who done it mystery with intrigue and even a court case. Not your typical POW movie

2. THE FLYING TIGERS-1942

John Wayne plays the head of a small air group trying to fight the Japanese while stationed in China. Funny, they show a quote by Ho Chih Min at the beginning. This film was done before Communism took hold. Quite good if a bit formulaic.

3. I. T. -2015

Pierce Brosnan is a billionaire who hires a nut that knows computers. Dumb, full of holes but ...no, still dumb.

4. RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP-1956

Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster on a sub during WW2. The men wished Lancaster was in charge instead of Gable but Gable may know more than what they give him credit for. Taut, well-acted film worth seeing.

5. HEARTBREAK RIDGE-2010

This is unexpectedly funny and in a good way when Clint Eastwood is sent in to get these kids ship shape for the army. They end up going to Grenada...yeah, Grenada but it was an invasion and men did die. It's a better film than I thought it would be and I love Mario Van Peebles in the role.

6. THE MONUMENT'S MEN-2005

True story based on the disgusting pillage of the Nazis, especially, Goring, of famous art to the amount of millions, not just money but objects. There were a small group of men and one brave woman, who helped retrieve thousands of pieces. The Movie could be better, but still engaging. 

7. THE FOUR FEATHERS-1939

The first of many remakes with this taking place during the Boer war. 4 friends, and the young lady that 2 men love, are ready to enter the war...well, except for one who does not see the reason to go and is given 4 white feathers, which means they think him a coward. When he finds out they are in trouble, he decides  to rescue them but, in disguise. It's well acted if a bit dated since I would never think of giving him a white feather for his decision. Remember, this film was done when Britain still ruled over quite a bit of land in the world. 

8. AUSTRALIA-2003

Nicole Kidman's husband owns a huge ranch in Australia so she must travel, from England, to see what all the fuss is about. She gets driven there by hunky Hugh Jackman. It's set during the war but you also have a meanie who wants the land plus you have an aboriginal kid who is trying not to be sent to a missionary. Its ok but it's all over the place...comedy, action, love story, epic. It never decides what it should be.

9. ENEMY AT THE GATES-2003

Excellent war film during the siege of Stalingrad. There is a famous sharpshooter, played by Jude Law, who becomes a hero to the Russian people. Rachel Weisz plays a fellow shooter and Joseph Fiennes is a reporter who places Jude in the headlines. Ed Harris is the nasty German Sharpshooter sent to take out Jude Law. The dread, bleakness is showcased well and it’s based on a true story.

10. MAN AGAINST THE MOB-1980

TV movie starring George Peppard as a PI with a special task force set up to catch some bad guys during the 1930s. I enjoyed this movie- fun  entertaining and surprising that it was made for TV.

11. VON RYAN'S EXPRESS-1965

Frank Sinatra is a pilot that crashes his plane, in Italy, during WW2. He is sent to a POW camp with  mainly British men. When they find out the US has broken through, they high-tail it out of there. They go through a number of hurdles but end up on a train making sure it goes to Switzerland. The Germans are hot on their trail. I love this move. Action, the cinematography is great when they are on the train. Fun to see.

11. THE CODE or THICK AS THIEVES-2009

Morgan Freeman is a famous thief who take Antonio Banderas under his wing to learn the ropes since Antonio shows promise. Meanwhile, the Feds are trying to nab this thief…will they? I enjoyed it and found it surprising in spots. Worth a look.

12. ROGUE MALE-1976

This was a BBC TV movie starring Peter O’Toole as an aristocratic man who tries to take out Hitler, fails, is captured, tortured but escapes. This happens in the first 10 minutes of the film. Well-acted, taut suspense movie.

13.  LAST DAYS OF PATTON-1986

George C. Scott reprises his Oscar winning( he declined the award and, unlike Brando, never did claim it later) role as the controversial General in the last year of his life. This was a TV movie played on regular TV which would never happen today. Again, well acted and thought out movie about this General. 

TV SHOWS

1. PICARD-SEASON 3-2023

Love it!! A couple of holes but I don’t care. Thoroughly enjoyed it and leaves a door open for another ST series starring Seven of Nine.

2. THE SALVAGE KINGS-2019-TO PRESENT

My hubby and I enjoy this Canadian show about a team of salvage people who go to homes, businesses, factories etc,,,, before the places are torn down, in search of treasures. They find everything from great old wood to signs, lights, tools, you name it. They sell it at their own store whether it is to individuals, collectors or film studios needing props. 

3. THE GREAT POTTERY THROWDOWN-2015- PRESENT

I my have spoken about this before but, I don’t remember, so that works for me. This is a British show about potters who wish to win the big prize and must create different pieces of pottery challenges which can include garden gnomes, lighting displays to working toilets. I have never bought much pottery but I do love anything creative plus the head guy cries at a drop of a hat. Love that!

Ok, this is late with a ton of movies. Have you seen any of these?

Oh My Stars! I Made Card

 

How long has it been?? Waaaaay toooooo looooonnnngg! My hubby's birthday was Thursday and he turned 66! He does not look it but he is not a happy camper. I was working but I bought him a cheesecake  and, this weekend, I made beef Stroganoff and he loved it. 

Ok...on with the card. The Library Challenge started up again and I'm so happy about that so I designed a card around the book they displayed. I created the background using alcohol inks. I stamped Mr. Ruggles, this stamp is about 2 years old, in black ink and placed him in the frame I made using a dye cut. I coloured it with distress sprays. I used double sided sticky tape and placed it all down. Stamped the sentiment in silver but used blue embossing powder and heated it up. I coloured the sticker borders in black and framed Mr. Ruggles. Oh, his first name is Percy. Poor guy is not a sports cat but he loves to read which makes him the perfect cat.

The Library Challenge-

HLS: Birthday -Anything Goes

Simon Says- Add a Sentiment 

Retro Rubber Challenge-Anything Goes rrcb207

The Male Room- Add An Animal

Thursday Movie Picks: TV Edition- Musical Theme

 

It's TV time again and this is a funny  theme that Wandering Through The Shelves chose. My mind went everywhere but I chose 3 that ended up being a theme within a theme within a theme. Also, have you noticed that today's shows have hardly any TV theme opening showing the casts' names etc.. I find that sad. 

Yesterday was pick the Oscar song theme so, without further adieu the Oscar winner was Windmill of Your Mind. The nominated one was Chitty, Chittenden, Bang, Bang and nada was Who Knows Where The Time Goes.

Now on with the show...

1. LOST IN SPACE- 1965-1968 COMPOSED BY JOHN WILLIAMS

Yup, before John Williams won Oscars and was Spielberg's go to composer he wrote many TV themes and was going by Johnnie Williams...or was that Johnny?? Well, this is a show, created and produced by Irwin Allen, I watched after school religiously to the point my mom asked if there was anything else but that on. Poor mom had to listen to this and Gilligan’s Island all the time. This show was about a family, with best friend in tow along with evil Dr. Smith, who get off course and crash land on a planet trying to get back to earth. The 3rd season they have the ship mobile going from planet to planet trying to get home. There are a couple of musical versions for this show but I chose the more popular one.

2. THE TIME TUNNEL-1966-1967- COMPOSED BY JOHN WILLIAMS 

This show, created and produced by Irwin Allen, only lasted 1 season and its a shame because it is quite good and it was solid for a Friday night but Execs canceled the series putting their bets on a show about Custer...it bombed. 2 scientists end up in a time machine going from one famous event( like the sinking of the Titanic) to  another all while trying not to change what happened. John Williams created the music for thos as well and it's excellent lending itself to what the show is about.

3. LAND OF THE GIANTS-1968-1970 COMPOSED BY JOHN WILLIAMS 

Take a guess who the producer and creator of this show was?? Yup Irwin Baby! He was all the rage back then and this is also about a group of people who went off course in their spacecraft landing on a planet that looks like Earth but everyone is huge and these guys are like Barbie and Ken dolls. The Giants are trying to find them and get rid of them so we often see the stars in predicaments where they need to be saved. This was a very expensive show to run with all the special effects and everything had to be made to scale. I loved watching this show too. 

Hope you like all my themes here but especially John Williams of Star Wars/Indiana Jones fame. What TV themes come.into your head?

Who Won the Oscar 1968

 

1968 seems like a good year to pick for this month so that’s what I went with. Nothing special why I chose this year so let’s see if you can choose who won the Oscar, who was nominated and who got nuttin’ honey. BTW, I'm entering this ro the Monday Music Moves Me hosted by Cathy from Curious as a Cathy.

1. CHITTY, CHITTY, BANG, BANG- SUNG BY DICK VAN DYKE & SALLY ANN HOWES

This song, composed, is famous and justly so because it is fun! It’s infectious and it plays more than once in the fun, family film of the same name that stars Penis Van Lesbian, er, I mean, Dick Van Dyke and the lovely Sally Ann Howes who has a very pretty voice. 

2. WHO KNOWS WHERE THE TIME GOES- SUNG BY JUDY COLLINS

Judy has such a beautiful voice and was part of the folk music scene of the 60s  but sang a lovely song, written by Sandy Denny, from the film, “The Subject Was Roses” starring Patricia Neal. This was the first film she made, winning an Oscar might I add, after suffering a debilitating stroke while pregnant 3 years earlier. The doctors thought she would never walk again never mind working gain and memorizing lines. This lady had quite the life and her autobiography is one to read because this gal went through some very difficult moments in her long life. I actually think she is pretty inspiring.

3.  WINDMILLS OF YOUR MIND SUNG BY NOEL HARRISON

This song, composed by Michael Legrand with lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman, comes from the film,  “The Thomas Crown Affair”, starring those 2 docile , likeable actors Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway. Actually, they are notorious for being the most obnoxious people to ever have to work with. This song was famously sung by Dusty Springfield but also sung by many others as well as known just by its music.

So can you guess which won won, which was nominated and which one came up empty?