James Bond Movie: ****^ Skyfall (2012)

 James Bond (Daniel Craig) is back.  But the first scene shows him shot and presumed dead.  They have his funeral and everything.  Someone is out to kill M (Judi Dench) and Bond comes out of retirement to protect her.  In the earlier scene Bond was trying to recover information about secret agents which had gotten away as Silva (Javier Bardem) had hacked their system.  So Bond must figure out how to protect M.  He is assisted by Eve (Naomi Harris).  She is the same agent who shot him in the first scene trying to keep from losing the information identifying all NATO agents.  

Silva is determined to kill M.  He is a past agent who ate the cyanide tablet placed in his teeth, but it didn't kill him.  It just disfigured his mouth.  He wears false teeth that hide this.  He is very bitter towards M.

Even after he is captured, he is able to escape by further infecting the MIS computers, so Bond runs to the home of his birth where he hopes to protect M.  In the home is a former companion, Kincade (Albert Finney).  He joins Bond in protecting M.  They come after Bond with lots of men and a helicopter.  They hold of the initial wave but the second wave begins to overwhelm them.  M and Kincade escape through tunnels under the home.  Bond blows up the home to even the odds.  After the explosion only Silva and one other man are alive.  Even the helicopter was too close and is destroyed.  In the initial wave, M was wounded.  

Bond tries to rejoin them after the explosion.  In doing so he kills the last man other than Silva.  Silva gets to M first, but Bond does him in with a knife throw to the back.  However M dies from loss of blood.  The wound was more serious than thought.  

In this version we get a new Moneypenny--Eve Moneypenny.  We also get a new Q (Ben Whishaw) who is more a computer man, but gets outsmarted when Silva hacks the system.  We also get a new Q for the next episode, Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes) who has been M's number 2.

The Bond movies seem to be getting better.  Their is more intrigue to them.  

Christmas Movie Review: ***^The Man Who Saved Christmas (2002)

 This is a made for TV movie feature released on TV  in 2002 and in DVD in 2008.  It tells the story of Alfred C. Gilbert (Jason Alexander) and his wife Mary Gilbert (Kelly Rowan). Gilbert has the dream of being a toy maker, but his special toy is not dong well, the erector set.  His wife suggests taking it out of the box so people can actually see them.  With that simple change the business takes off and they are quickly hopping off the shelves.  The business is one people want to work for with daycare and bonuses.

WWI comes along and things change.  Alfred's brother (Ari Cohen) is drafted, and Alfred is called to stop making toys and move to munitions and gas masks for the war effort.  The business prospers but no longer pays extra for overtime, nor bonuses nor are the able to provide for children.  Alfred's brother is missing in action.  What is worse is the government wants to cancel Christmas, and come up with a media campaign based on something Alfred said.  Alfred is backed into a corner, and comes across a dictophone message from his brother about Alfred being a dreamer.  

Alfred goes to Washington to petition to start making toys and to not cancel Christmas.  For this he was known as the man who saved Christmas.  His father (Ed Asner) supported him in this.  And the brother makes it home Christmas Day. 

James Bond Movie: **** Quantum of Solace (2008)

 The Bond movies seem to get more gritty as we enter the millennium.  We are back to pretty women during the opening credits.  This is a continuation of Casino Royale as Bond (Daniel Craig) is still seeking who is behind the murder of his woman, Vesper.  At the same time he is trying to track down a new organization with international ambitions.  They have men everywhere, we are told.  M (Judi Dench) is much more involved in this movie, and is actually in harms way by a double agent in the organization.  At the time the secret agency are into Bolivia where it seems even the police have been infiltrated, as well as Britain's Prime Minister's office.  It is ordered that Bond be shot on sight when he kills a couple police officers who were trying to frame him for the murder of his friend,  Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini).  Bond saves Camille (Olga Kurylenko) on several occasions, and she him as well.  They have a mutual interest in Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), he as a point to lead him to the killer of Vesper and to uncover a secret organization, and she to get to General Meldrano (Joaquín Cosio), who killed her family and is supported by Greene to take over Bolivia.  Co-agent, and short term love of Bond, Strawberry Fields (Gemma Arterton) is killed by Greene as she covers Bond's back.  Greene is taking over the water in Bolivia and is set to cause a draught.  His organization has done similar activities an many countries.  The CIA is also supporting Meldrano, more Agent Beam (David Harbour) than Agent Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright).  

This show has lots of excitement.  There is a chase over roofs and into a bell tower.  The action goes up and down and ends with swinging on the bell tower ropes.  Who will get to a gun first?  We have Bond in an old plane facing a jet and a helicopter.  He is able to face Greene and his men in the desert.  Camille gets her revenge, and Bond leaves Greene in the desert after having gotten the information he was seeking.  The last scene has him confronting the next level up in the organization.

I enjoyed this Bond movie.

 

Christmas Movie Review: *** Beyond Tomorrow aka Beyond Christmas (1940)

 Three older men (Harrey Carey, C. Aubrey Smith and Michael O'Brien) are bored at Christmas time with just themselves for entertainment.  Their dinner guests fell through.  They each toss a wallet out the window with ten dollars, in hopes someone honest will bring the wallet back, and then stay for dinner.  They actually have success twice, and as a result put together a couple, James and Jean (Richard Carlson and Jean Parker), who become more attached over the year.  James and Jean love each other and were on the point of announcing their engagement when they get word the three old men had died in a plane crash.  Phil has some talent with singing, and gets a part on the radio.  However another woman enters in,  Arlene (Helen Vinson) and she is a manipulative person.  She sings with James, and convinces him they should run off together.  The ghosts of the three men are distressed, knowing things will not turn out well.  

They don't.  Arlene's husband tracks them down and shoots them both.  James is given the opportunity to come back and he takes his second chance.

This movie is in black and white.  Their idea of the after life is a bit different than mine but the story seems to work.

Christmas Movie Review: *** It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002)

 This is a Muppet retake of the story "It's a Wonderful Life."  Kermit is down on his luck as they are losing the theater.  Rachel Bitterman (Joan Cusack) is determined to foreclose on the property, and turn it into a brothel.  Daniel (David Arquette) is an angel who wants to do something to help Kermit and the muppets keep the theater.  The muppets raise the money, and Fonzy is taking the money to the bank.  However he is greatly distracted, and somehow gives the money to Salvation Army by accident.  All is lost.  But for Rizzo who is able to get the theater legally a historical building as the Muppet Theater.  It must remain a theater.  Surprisingly fun movie.  Miss Piggy leaves and goes to daytime TV; but she comes back.  And the Muppets are Kermit's friends and buoy him up.  

Marvel Animated Movie Review: **^Iron Man: Rise of Technovore (2013)

 Iron Man (Matthew Mercer) faces a new nemesis, a young man, Ezekiel Stane/Technovore (Eric Bauza) who uses a new type of nano technology to destroy people and computers and whatever stands in his way.  This includes his taking out Rhodey/War Machine (James Mathis III).  The part of this movie is why Nick Fury (John Erik Bentley) as director of SHIELD is so interested in Stark coming in rather than letting hm pursue Technovore.  This results in considerable loss of property.  He even sends Black Widow (Clare Grant) and Hawkeye (Troy Baker also Jarvis voice) to bring him in.  They would have succeeded if not for the Punisher (Norman Reedus) helping him.  Also important to him is Pepper Potts (Kate Higgins) who helps him with computers and he has used her voice as a backup for his satellite that Technovore has infected.  

Turns out War Machine is not dead, but took a long time recovering.  Without his help Technovore would have cleared the world of all humans.

Lots of action; but I felt the characters lacked motivation for some of their actions.

Christmas Music Review: Michael Buble: Christmas

Michael Bublé Enterprise Records 2011.

Michael Bublé lends his jazzy and classical style to Christmas.  He sings a ouple songs which are generlly thought to be women's numbers but does so with success--All I Want for Christmas is You and Santa Baby.  The jazz numbers are very catchy, White Christmas, Jingle Bells and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.  Blue Christmas really catches the blues feel.  And then classical numbers include Ave Maria and Silent Night.  This is a very fun CD.  It clncludes with Feliz Navidad with Thalia.  It is mostly performed in Spanish.

Most excellent C.D.