Change Your Image
shelley-bourdon
Reviews
Mozart in the Jungle (2014)
A Creative Inspiration
I have enjoyed each season of Mozart in the Jungle; but Season 4 touched me in an unexpectedly deep way. I think it's because this season captures what it's like to completely surrender to the Spirit of Creativity ("the blood"). To create real art, the kind of art that makes your heart feel as if it's standing at attention, one must not care at all about what others think. One must be willing to sacrifice one's ego--allowing others to laugh at you, to label you as a failure, or as crazy or stupid, or even to socially ostracize you--knowing that, in the end, it's totally worth it because something beautiful and new has come into being though you. To create something totally unique is the closest we come, I believe, to knowing the Source of our Being ("God"). Season 4 of Mozart in the Jungle has helped me to remember this. From the bottom of my heart, I thank the producers, writers, and actors of this program for the beautifully unique work of art you have created. You have given me the courage to keep forging ahead in surrendering myself to the Spirit of Creativity.
Why Him? (2016)
Never Laughed So Hard in My Life
Knowing nothing about this movie beforehand, I had no expectations when I began to watch Why Him? And since I was feeling ill at the time (too drained to do anything other than watch a movie on my Amazon Prime/HBO channel) I was thinking that I would probably fall asleep before I got to the middle of the movie. That's not what happened. I just about laughed my head off throughout the whole thing.
Unfortunately, each time I began to laugh that caused my cough to start up again, and then I would get to coughing so hard that I'd start hacking up great big wads of phlegm (and my dog would hop up off her bed and rush over to me to place her paw in my lap, her eyes full of worry; she probably thought I was dying). But, man oh man, it was great to laugh so hard on a day when I was feeling so under the weather.
Why Him? is definitely one of the funniest movies I've ever seen, and because it made me laugh so hard (so many, many times), I'm giving it a 10 as well as a hearty thumbs-up.
Arrival (2016)
This Sci-fi Masterpiece Teaches Us about Time and as Well as Love
Having recently watched the movie Arrival for the second time (I loved it so much, once was not enough!), I was confused as to how anyone who had viewed this movie could possibly give it a rating of "1." After reading through a good number of the 1- rated reviews, I've concluded that these individuals, in addition to being mean- spirited, missed a very important fact about this movie. This sci-fi story, which deals with the concept of non-linear time, demonstrates how language helps to shape our view of time.
The development of our language is, in large part, dependent upon the physical aspects of our bodies, which, of course, our planet's environment helps to determine (i.e., a planet with a super-strong force of gravity will foster the growth of smaller physical bodies than, say, a planet with a weaker force of gravity; a planet that is mostly liquid will foster the growth of physical bodies that have ways of "swimming" through that liquid, while a planet that has a lot of dry land will foster the growth of bodies that ambulate across the land with physical appendages that "walk" rather than swim). If you look at the human body, with its pair of eyes that are placed on the front of our heads, it makes sense that we view reality primarily through the lens of linear time. Because of the placement of our eyes, we literally see ourselves "moving forward" every day, and our language supports such a view. Not only do we often speak of "moving forward" on a project, we also refer to someone as "backwards" when that person does not display "forward thinking."
But what if our bodies had been constructed differently? What if we had multiple eyes that wrapped around our heads, allowing us a 360-degree view of our environment in every waking moment? We might have designed a world view that incorporated non- linear aspects of time, and our language would most definitely have reflected such a view. If, though, in traveling to another planet, we attempted to teach our language (steeped in the concepts of non-linear time) to another species (not steeped in non- linear time), as they learned our language that might cause a shift in the perceptions of those other beings so that they were able to grasp, more easily, the concept of non-linear time. And this might, in turn, begin to change those beings' perception of "reality," simply because they would be viewing reality through a different lens.
Already we have humans upon our planet (some of our physicists, for instance) who are able to view time in a non-linear fashion. Einstein once wrote that "People like us, who believe in physics, know the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." I believe it is the language of mathematics that has helped these physicists to look outside the box of our conventional perception of time. However, if one is not mathematically inclined (and I include myself in this category), watching the movie Arrival can help, I have found, to nudge one's mind into a new way of perceiving time.
But, as much as I love how this film portrays the concept of non-linear time (and demonstrates how language can impact the way we view time), there is one other aspect of this film that is, in my opinion, equally important: this film is a visually beautiful portrait of a mother's love for her daughter. Loving a child often pierces the heart in a way that no other type of love does. It is as if, through the act of loving a child, a permanent imprint of the child is left upon the heart forever. It is, I have found, a gift to love a child (even when that child is not so easy to love). You learn how to put the needs of another ahead of your own, and that helps us to learn how to be a little less selfish and a little less self-centered. The portrait of a mother's love for her daughter, found within the film Arrival, is one of the most "real" depictions of parental love for a child that I have found in the World of Fiction. Both times I have watched this film, this portrait of a mother's love for her child has moved me to tears.
In my opinion, Arrival is a perfect "10," a movie that I will enjoy watching again and again. From the bottom of my heart, I sincerely thank every single individual who contributed to the production of this sci-fi masterpiece!
Star Trek: Voyager: Night (1998)
Great Beginning to Season Five!
I, for one, can't stand the fact that Captain Janeway's personal ethics continued to put her crew at risk throughout Seasons 1 - 4. In this episode, however, she finally becomes as disgusted with herself as I have been. (Thank Heavens!) It was refreshing to see a glimpse of humility in this character. It's the first time I felt a genuine sense of fondness for her.
I thought this episode was a great beginning for Season Five. Yes, there were a few holes in the script-writing, but nothing worth mentioning, in my opinion. Unlike most Trekkies out there, I'm only now getting around to watching the Voyager series (on Amazon Prime). The writing for the series got dramatically better with the beginning of Season Four. I can only hope this upward arc continues. I look forward to watching the rest of Season Five.
Star Trek Beyond (2016)
Too little science, too much fantasy
Maybe it's a generational thing. A young man I know loves this movie, but I found it to be only so- so. First of all, this is truly the first time I've ever watched a Star Trek movie when I found myself saying, "Huh"? What that means is that the screenplay writers didn't fill in all of the existing "holes" within this story.
Let me give you an example. In one scene Kirk is creating a diversion so that his crew members can escape to safety. Although we know he's using some sort of holographic thingy to create false images of himself so that it appears there are many versions of Kirk on a bike instead of just his one physical form, how, in such a short amount of time does he manage to do this? Earlier in the movie, we've been shown how these holographic devices were used to camouflage a grounded space ship, but how would it be possible to use these same devices to create the illusion that there are many versions of the same man racing around on a motorcycle when there is really only one man? Those of us who are long-time sci-fi fans like to have a little more science in our sci-fi stories (or at least something that resembles science). But, the way they did this scene, the "science" of Kirk's holographic trickery was, to my mind, such an incredible impossibility that it would have been more believable if he'd suddenly come across Harry Potter's wand on a nearby rock and conveniently cast a spell for multiplying one's self. If you're going to introduce magic into a sci-fi story, great, but don't call it sci-fi. Call it fantasy.
And call me a party-pooper, but--good gravy--how can anyone accept that a large space ship (the "Franklin") that crash-landed a hundred years before in an area covered with rocky cliffs can actually be made to fly off the planet with a little engineering "magic" by Scotty and his new exceptionally smart white-haired, striped-face female friend? Did Scotty also find Harry Potter's wand lying around somewhere? Folks, come on. With a little bit of tweaking to the screenplay, that part of the story could have been a bit less fantasy and more science-y. For instance, there could have been a small shuttle on the Franklin in a shuttle-bay area that was not severely damaged. And maybe Scotty and his white-haired, striped-faced "lassy" could have done some real engineering work to get the shuttle back up to snuff. Yes, I know, they would have had to return, eventually, to the planet to rescue the rest of the crew since a small shuttle wouldn't have been large enough to hold everyone, but it's not like the rest of the crew are key characters in this story--you only need enough room for the key characters to fly off the planet in order to save the day. And, yes, I also know that a small shuttle isn't as powerful as a larger ship, but, yet again, Scotty could have shown us an example of his extraordinary engineering skills (with the help of his new exceptionally smart friend, of course--the white-haired, striped-faced "lassy").
It really doesn't take much creativity to make a scene less fantasy and more science-y, even if the science is all wrong. It is always possible to create an illusion of science in just about any situation in a sci-fi story. When one resorts to magical fantasy, that is, in my opinion, sloppy writing.
One last example of sloppy writing: When Mr. Evil gets sucked into outer space with his newly obtained Weapon of Mass Destruction (due purely to the stupidity of the Federation who decided to trust a total stranger, a non-English speaking female creature with a very weird looking head), why did they not retrieve this weapon and neutralize it? Is it because the writers are hoping to resurrect this weapon in another movie? As far as we know, in this particular fictional Star Trek universe, this incredibly destructive weapon is still traveling through space on a trajectory that's heading towards--gasp!--Earth.
Second Coming (2014)
I am very disappointed!
Not only did I have problems understanding the actors throughout the entire movie, I felt that there needed to be more explanation about what was actually happening. Basically, even though I've watched this movie, all I know about this film's plot is what I read on the back of the DVD box:
"Busy working parents Mark and Jackie have not been intimate with each other in several months, so when Jackie discovers she is pregnant, it comes as an inexplicable shock to all. Jackie insists she's been faithful, but Mark reacts with rage, knowing the baby can't possibly be his. As the unnerving side effects of Jackie's condition worsen, will this seeming miracle bring the family closer together or tear them apart?"
In my opinion, that last question remains unanswered. Did the husband and wife get a divorce? Are they still married? Are they separated? What does the husband, or ex- husband, think of his wife/ex-wife? Inquiring minds want to know.
If I'd paid money to see this film, I'd be feeling pretty angry right now. As it is, I rented it for free from my local library so my only regret is that my ears are still ringing due to the fact that I kept having to increase the volume of my television in order to try and understand what the actors were saying. Needless to say, I am very disappointed!
La grande illusion (1937)
The Grand Illusion Is That Folks Think This Is a Great Movie
I was looking forward to watching this film. I had read that "Le Grande Illusion" is considered to be a classic anti-war film. I was expecting something along the lines of "All Quiet on the Western Front" (a truly classic anti-war film, in my opinion), but "Le Grande Illusion" misses the mark when it comes to presenting the dark side of war. The only reason I gave it a rating of 2 instead of 1 is that on my copy of the DVD I watched there is a short message, an introduction, from the film's director Jean Renoir (son of the famous impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir). It was of slight interest for me to learn that Jean Renoir was a pilot during WWI and that some of the scenes in the film are based upon the stories of a pilot-friend of his, though who knew stories from a WWI pilot could be so boring? I had to fight to stay awake during this entire movie. At the end of the movie, I was reminded of the old Hans Christian Andersen tale "The Emperor's New Clothes." People, this film ain't got any clothes. It was a complete waste of my time.
Maleficent (2014)
The Transformational Power of Love
Whether real or fiction, if a story presents to us an example of love's transformational power, it is a story worthy of our attention.
The reason so many of us do not waste our time learning how to love those who are difficult to love is that such a love requires a great amount of courage on our part. First, we must be willing to face and embrace every dark aspect of ourselves, no matter how large we imagine our imperfections to be, no matter how great our sense of shame over our past mistakes may be. Secondly, to love one who is at first difficult to love also requires that we soften ourselves enough to be changed. If we go the distance in learning how to love in this way, the process will always transform us for the better.
Unfortunately, we do not have a lot of examples in our culture's movies, books, or stories of what such a transformational act of love looks like. Fortunately, Disney's film Maleficent gives us such an example. To all who participated in the production of this film I say, Well done! Beautiful story, beautiful imagery, beautifully acted, and beautifully produced. I felt my heart was glowing as I left the movie theater.