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Being in the Room and Witnessing Creativity
I love to know how things are made. It’s one of the main reasons why I buy the DVDs of my favorite movies—other than, you know, ownership—because there are behind-the-scenes featurettes and interviews with the creators. I think this started back in the Star Wars days of the 1970s when I would read all about how George Lucas and company created the movie that changed the trajectory of so many lives. I loved how they raided model shops to create the Death Star and used miniatures, models, and matte paintings to create the galaxy far, far away. How many of us picked up our own cameras to make our own…
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Growing Up and Older With Indiana Jones: A Dial of Destiny Review
Indiana Jones and the Dial of destiny is a chance to reconnect with an old friend for one last adventure before we have to say good-bye. In that framework, the new film works quite well.
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The Real Batman Day: June 23 1989
[In light of Michael Keaton’s return as Batman in 2023’s The Flash, I thought I would re-post this piece from 2019 about the the original Batman movie from 1989, now thirty-four summers ago. The original post is here if you want to compare. Ever since 1989, the date of June 23 has been fixed in my mind. It will always be the true Batman Day for me and likely millions more.] Where were you 30 years ago today? Probably standing in line to see Batman. The Date It all began with a symbol and a date. A simple poster considering what it wrought. For months, all you needed to know…
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The Rock Band With Horns Remembers How to Rock: Chicago 19 at 35
Chicago 19 arrived in record stores thirty-five years ago today and it marked a change for the band. After a three-album run, producer David Foster and the band parted ways. But Foster had made his mark and helped revitalize Chicago for a brand-new decade and audience and, in doing so, put the spotlight on Peter Cetera, who, after singing the band’s biggest hits in the early 80s, departed for a solo career. Back in 1986, Cetera and his former band each had new albums, but with Foster behind the boards for Chicago 18 and Cetera sticking close to the sound of Chicago 16 and Chicago 17, Solitude/Solitaire and Chicago 18…
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The Inspirational Nature of the Movie “Air”
I knew next to nothing about this story (even though I’m old enough to live through it) but very much was looking forward to seeing it. I was not disappointed. I really enjoyed this movie. It arrived at a good time as I can coming out of a bad mental health week. The positivity and perseverance of Matt Damon’s character was good to see as well as Phil Knight’s (Ben Affleck’s character). I enjoyed the movie so much that I stopped at Barnes and Noble and picked up Knight’s memoir, Shoe Dog, before I got home. Damon’s speech to convince Michael Jordan to sign of Nike was excellent. I got…