Linus Van Pelt Theologian

 

Movie Review: Parallel Mothers (Madres paralelas)

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A+

Pedro Almodóvar is one of my favorite directors and Parallel Mothers is one of his best films. 

The basic storyline of this film sounds like it could feel a bit like a soap opera, but as you watch the movie it does not come off this way at all. The reason for this is the pure sincerity and honesty put into this movie. In other words, this movie feels completely real without a single moment that rings false. Much of the reason for this comes from the main character herself. In lesser hands this character would have simply gone through the same emotions any movie character would in the same situation with no more depth than that. However, this character deals with many conflicting emotions This is a fully fleshed out character who overcomes any melodramatic overtones of the plot and becomes a completely real person. Much of this is due not only to Almodóvar's excellent script but an incredible performance by Penélope Cruz (her 7th film with Almodóvar). Almodóvar has referred to Cruz as muse and two always bring out the absolute best in each other every time they work together. This could not be clearer than in this film as Cruz gives perhaps the finest performance of her career. This is not an easy role to play but she plays it too perfection, both capturing the broad moments and the subtle with seemingly effortless ease. Not that she is the only one in cast worth noting as the entire cast is perfect in their roles. Young Milena Smit (in only her second feature film) is incredible as Ana, a young woman who our main character meets at the hospital while pregnant, but who will come to play a much larger role in her life. Smit and Cruz share incredible chemistry with each other and really light up the screen whenever they share it. This is certainly an actress to pay attention to. Pedro Almodóvar's script is incredibly well handled. This is not a movie in which you can predict anything that is going to happen. Yet Almodóvar wisely avoids anything that would make it feel too melodramatic. Instead, everything that happens no matter how unlikely feels like the most natural thing in the world. There are times when you can almost forget you are watching a fictional movie but instead feel you are watching the lives of these two women. This is also one of Pedro Almodóvar's most political films. This too is handled masterfully. It never feels like the characters stop to sermonize to you but instead these political points are told in the most natural and unobtrusive way. They are also incredibly intelligent and will leave you with food for thought as you leave the theater. While they do deal with the political history of Spain, you don't have to be familiar with that history to be affected by the powerful message behind this movie because it speaks not only to specific political events but great human truths that are often ignored and those are universal and timeless. All of this leads to an ending image that is simply cinematic perfection. 

This may be my favorite movie of 2021 and it is certainly a must see for any other fans of one of Spain's finest directors. 

Cowboy Church #156

 Hello, my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church. 

Today's musical selection begins with Marty Robbins singing Where Could I Go (But to the Lord). This song was written by James Buchanan Coats in 1940. The hymn was inspired by his neighbor Joe Keyes. When Keyes was dying, Coats asked him if he knew where he was going to spend eternity. Keyes responded, “Where could I go but to the Lord?” This is followed by Bobby Bare with his 1966 recording of Just a Closer Walk With Thee. Next is The Carter Family with their 1929 recording of Diamonds in the Rough. The group had recorded this song on February 15th, 1929, along with 4 other songs. The other songs recorded that day included Engine One Forty-Three, Bring Back My Blue-Eyed Boy to Me and The Foggy Mountain Top. This song has an important message for all of us. There are none of us who have ever been too rough around the edges to be saved by Jesus. He wishes for every one of us to come to him and be saved and his great power and mercy he can make even the roughest of us shine even brighter than the diamonds for him. When I look at how stubborn I have been in my own life, I am sure glad that Jesus has never stopped working on me and I hope I become more like him each and every day.    Johnny Cash worked harder on The Man Comes Around, then any other song he had ever written. It is also one of the most ambitious songs he ever wrote. It is lyrically and musically complex with an intensity that leaves one with being unable to feel neutral about what he/she just heard. This song talks about God's grace and love but also offers a stark warning of what lies ahead for those who reject God. The song's origins first came from a dream of John's where he met the queen of England who told the singer, "Johnny Cash! You like a thorn tree in a whirlwind." He knew he had heard this phrase before and looking through his Bible he found it was from the book of Job. After this he began an extensive study of Bible verses dealing with prophecies and the end times. The result of this study is this song which deals with what will happen when Jesus comes back. Sound engineer David Ferguson would later remember, "We cut it a few times. We cut it first with Marty Stuart and Johnny as a tick-tock sort of thing. Then he worked on it again with Randy Scruggs. It was then edited to make it meter out. The way Johnny laid it out, only he knew where the changes were going to be in the instrumental parts. It was something you had to learn. Rick [producer Rick Ruben] would take a bar out here and a couple bars out there to make the whole thing uniform." The result of all this is one the finest songs John had ever written and a musical masterpiece on every level. Pastor and Johnny Cash Biographer, Greg Laurie wrote about this song, "Personally, I think this is the greatest song that Johnny ever wrote It is both biblical and personal, powerful and poetic. From its first rapid strum of his guitar to the pounding piano chords, it is a picture of complexity and simplicity. The deft production skills of Rick Ruben, who understood that 'less was more' in this case, added to the familiar voice of the American icon Johnny Cash, and the result was a match made in Heaven." This is followed by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with their version of the southern gospel classic, I'll Fly Away. Afterwards is Red Steagall with I Ride for the Brand of the Man with the Nail Scarred Hands. This is followed by Bill Monroe with I've Found a Hiding Place. This song reminds us, that there is no trouble the world can give us, that is beyond the power of Jesus Christ to help us overcome. Nothing this world can do can take away the salvation Jesus has given us. While things won't stop going wrong until we find ourselves in Heaven, through Jesus we have comfort through every storm and difficultly. Today's musical selection ends with The Sons of the Pioneers with their 1937 recording of Leaning on the Everlasting Arms. This hymn began creation with a man named Anthony Showalter. As a fan of gospel music and an elder in a Presbyterian church, he held many "singing schools" at various churches in the south. One day he received two letters from former students who were struggling after their wives had passed. To respond to these letters, Showalter consulted scripture. He came across Deuteronomy 33:27, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." After reading this verse lyrics for a song chorus went through his head and he wrote down, "“Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.” After using this in the letters to his former students he sent this chorus to his friend hymnist, Elisha Hoffman. In the letter he also wrote, “Here is the chorus for a good hymn from Deuteronomy 33:27, but I can’t come up with the verses.” Hoffman then wrote the rest of the lyrics to which Showalter put to music. The hymn was published in 1887.

Up next is Charlie Daniels talking about Merle Haggard. 

Next is Cowboy Kent Rollins with his poem, Horseshoes in Heaven.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:38

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:23

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:6-7

Do to others as you would have them do to you. Luke 6:31

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11

A voice cries: In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Isaiah 40:3-4

 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:18

 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again. 

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #158

 Hello my friends and happy Saturday morning. Once again it is time for some classic cartoons. 

Today's cartoon selection begins with The Pink Panther in Pink Sphinx (1968). This short film was directed by Hawley Pratt, who had been a layout artist on many of Friz Freleng's (the Freleng in DePatie-Freleng (the studio that made these films)) cartoons for Warner Brothers. Pratt was directing quite a few Pink Panther shorts and other films for DePatie-Freleng at this time. 

Next we join Little Lulu in Loose in a Caboose (1947). To read more about the great looking print here, read Steve Stanchfield's latest article on Cartoon Research.

The following is from an issue of Paramount Around the World (dated April, 1938), "BETTY BOOP IS DEAD! SALLY SWING IS SUCCESSOR!! It is with a sense of deep regret that we record the passing of Miss Betty Boop, the amiable, pulchritudinous, neckless young lady who has served Paramount so loyally for so many years. Miss Boop passed on suddenly but not before she was able to name her successor. Miss Sally Swing is the new Paramount cartoon eyeful. We present her above - front, side and reverse, as well as in the purely geometrical form that she is known to animators. Sally is presumed to be about 16 years of age. She is the epitome of modern youth, full of life, pep and the magic something which so sustains young people in the face of fearful odds. She is devoted to swing, is lithe and lissome, and, in parlance of Hollywood's scriptures is the ideal jitterbug. Her first cartoon appearance is scheduled for approximately two months from now." The following is from a 1938 issue of Motion Picture Daily, "Betty Boop, the Max Fleischer cartoon character which attained great popularity in its eight years of existence, will be missing from the Paramount short subject list next season. In Betty's place there will be a new cartoon character, Sally Swing, who is designed to be a modernized, stream-lined version of her predecessor, Paramount will distribute 12 of the cartoons featuring the new character."  This not true as Sally's cartoon career would end as soon as it began, and she would never have her own series. However, Betty's career was soon to end. 1939 would mark her last theatrical cartoon short. So here is Sally's attempt to break into the movies, Sally Swing (1938). 

Up next is the first pairing of Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales, It's Nice to Have a Mouse Around the House (1965). The two would be paired together in 25 more cartoons. 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Next comes Mickey, Donald and Goofy in Moving Day (1936). Like many of the Mickey, Donald and Goofy shorts, this cartoon has each character working together from the same goal but having separate set pieces for each one. While Donald and Goofy really get to shine in their set pieces, Mickey has little to do in this movie. After his character had been toned down from his earlier more mischievous self (due in part to parents wanting him to be more of a role model for kids), he became less of a comic character and more of a straight man. Because of this his cartoons around this era had most of the comedy coming from characters like Donald, Goofy and Pluto. He was originally going to have a bit more to do in this film as there was a planned set piece in which he would fight with an ironing board. However, this scene was dropped. Mickey's scenes in this picture are heavily animated by Paul Allen and Marvin Woodward. One of the highlights of this film is the entire sequence with Goofy and the piano. This scene was expertly animated by Art Babbitt. Woolie Reitherman (who would go on to direct The Sword and the Stone (1963), The Jungle Book (1967) and Robin Hood (1973), among others) animated very little of this movie. He animated Pete finding out what was going on and barging in as well as him yelling, "Hey come back." This cartoon also marks the first color appearance of Mickey's nemesis Pete.

While on a Disney not let us enjoy one of Walt Disney's silent Alice Comedies, Alice the Jailbird (1925). While earlier Alice comedies had fully live action openings and closings (that highly resembled Hal Roach's Our Gang films) by this time the shorts had dropped that and immediately started in the cartoon world. The only live action character in this movie is Alice herself. Here she is played by Margie Gay, who took over the role from Virgina Davis. 

Now let us end with a song. 

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for more animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry. 

Resources Used

http://afilmla.blogspot.com/search/label/Shorts_UA?updated-max=2008-11-18T21:00:00-08:00&max-results=20&start=8&by-date=false

Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse: The Ultimite History by J.B. Kaufman and David Gerstein. 

Walt in Wonderland: The Silent Films of Walt Disney by Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

   

    

Movie Review: Hotel Transylvania Transformania

 

Note: This film is only available on Amazon Prime. 

Michael's Movie Grade: C+

A fun movie though not as good as the previous films in the franchise. 

This movie marks the first Hotel Transylvania film, not to be directed by Genndy Tartakovsky (though he did work as a writer and producer) and the first one not to feature Adam Sandler as the voice of Dracula (impressionist Brain Hull does a quite good job though). Because of this I was initially worried about this franchise going a film too far. Luckily while it may not have lived up to its predecessors, I had a good time watching it. Like the previous movies, one of the best things about this picture is the characters. For a franchise with a lot of characters they all have distinct personalities and are all quite likable. Because of this we truly care about what happens in this story. Like the other movies in this franchise, though this is a silly comedy the emotional moments work surprisingly well. The relationships between Drac, Mavis and Johnny feel real to us and bring a good emotional center. On the comedy side the gimmick of monsters turning into humans and humans into monsters is a good one and the best comedy moments come from this. While the humor can be a bit uneven at times the jokes the work, work very well. 

On the downside the idea of this movie centering so much on Drac not fully accepting Johnny as part of the family feels a bit derivative. This has been a major part of the previous movies and there has been quite of character development involving this. So much of that character development seems to disappear with this film and we are obviously taking steps back in that department. It also makes the film feel a bit too similar to the previous movies. On the humor side sometimes, the slapstick could benefit from some sharper timing and slapstick gags that could have been funny aren't simply because they are not timed well enough. There are also too many comedy moments that rely on screaming which can get a bit annoying at times. 

While not the best this franchise has to offer it is still a fun movie.     

Saps at Sea (1940)

 

Saps at Sea was the last film Laurel and Hardy made at the Hal Roach Studios and the last one with Harry Langdon (who was one of the great silent movie comedians and worked as a writer on the Laurel and Hardy features The Flying Deuces (1939), A Chump at Oxford (1939) and Blockheads (1938)  as one of the writers and the last one where they would appear with frequent co-stars Charlie Hall and James Finlayson. With this was also the last film from the duo in which the supporting cast would be providing the laughs just as much as our two stars. In the post-Hal Roach films, Stan and Babe would provide the laughs while all the other actors played it very straight. Almost as if the filmmakers knew this was ending, this movie has some of the nuttiest supporting characters in the history of Laurel and Hardy. This is especially true of Eddie Conrad as Stan’s music teacher. The very way he looks in this film is over the top and silly. 

 This movie begins with our boys working in a horn factory. However, the constant noise stresses Ollie to the point where he has a mental break down (“Horns to the right of me. Horns to the left of me”). Ollie is then diagnosed with “hornaphobia” and is sent home. A doctor (James Finlayson) tells Ollie the only cure is sea air. Ollie is afraid of sailing, but Stan has an answer, they can rent a boat and sit out in it without sailing. However, one day while the boys are sleeping on the boat an escaped murderer named Nick (Richard Cramer) stows away on the boat and the boat accidently sets sail. 

 This is an excellent film that resembles the duo’s best shorts. The gags come fast and furious and all of them are very funny. This film goes by so fast that it seems to end before you know it, leaving the audience wanting more.

 One delightful sequence involves a cameo from Ben Turpin. During the silent era, many comedians were known for looking unusual. Often this was done through a fake mustache. However, Ben Turpin had probably the most unique physical trait of the silent comedians. He had very crossed eyes. This was obviously used as joke material in plenty of silent comedies. Though he was much less prolific in the sound era, he could sometimes make gag appearances in sound comedies, such as Wheeler and Woolsey's Cracked Nuts (1931). However, Saps at Seas uses these crossed eyes for one of the cleverest jokes the trait was ever given. The legendary director D.W. Griffith was working as a techincal advisor on One Million B.C., which was made at Hal Roach studios. One day he visited the set of Saps at Sea. As soon as he got there he called out, "Where is the great Ben Turpin." D.W. Griffith and Ben Turpin spent quite a while just talking. Griffith then watched the boys film and told them, "You two are greater pantomime artists than Charlie Chaplin." Director Gordon Douglas would later state about this remark, "I think he genuinely believed that too." 

Gordon Douglas had just recently directed Oliver Hardy (without Stan Laurel) in Zenobia (1939). That film also featured Harry Langdon in the cast by the way. About making Saps at Sea Douglas said, "After Zenobia which was an expensive picture with some big names in it, the Saps at Sea film was done a lot faster, but that's because Stan was pretty much determined to show Roach, we could do a film efficiently and on schedule. Yes, I directed the film, but Stan was very much in charge. He knew what he wanted, and I had enough sense not to interfere with him. He was giving me an education in directing."

A review in the Hollywood Motion Picture Review stated “Here is one that will drag them in, and they will really enjoy the slapstick. Why doesn’t Universal or Warners grab this pair and give them some decent stories ad a little dough to work with.”

The following is an exhibitor’s review in the Motion Picture Herald dated March 8, 1941. 

“Saps at Sea: Laurel and Hardy – I for one regret that these comedy stars comedy stars stopped making pictures. At least there are none in sight and none announced in the trade press. All their pictures have done well at this theater and ‘Saps at Sea’ is no exception to this rule. This picture was filled with the usual L. and H. funnyisms, which brings out gales of laughter. This was doubled with ‘Marines Fly High’ RKO – J. E. Stocker, Myrtle Theatre, Detroit, Mich. Neighborhood patronage.”    

The Independent Film Journal had an article about Cleone Cloe Baker the manager of The Raleigh N. C. Varsity Theater, this article stated “Somehow or another she manages to turn a stinkeroo into something less than a complete flop and often times into an overwhelming success. Her recent handling of ‘Saps at Sea’ a Laurel and Hardy comedy- a success by the way that brought her a letter of congratulations from the president of her chain- is one of the best examples of Mrs. Baker in action. When informed that the Varsity must run ‘Saps at Sea’ Mrs. Baker was in despair – She knew it was the kind of show her customers would stay away from in droves. Putting on her thinking cap, she hit upon an ‘All Comedy Night.’ At once she went to work putting out lots and lots of strategic advertising and getting some comedy shorts to fill out the bill. Result: A capacity house that broke the all-time record.” This shows that by this time Laurel and Hardy films where no longer the guaranteed box office successes they had been during the 1920’s and 30’s.       

Resources Used

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies by Randy Skretvedt

Video Link: Gene Autry - Texans Never Cry (from Texans Never Cry (1951))