James Stewart Movie Review: **** Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

 This is a very good James Stewart before he went to war.  In this movie he goes to war with the U.S. Senate.  Mr. Smith (Stewart) is a boy's club leader, and when the senator dies, the boys convince the governor (Guy Kibbee) to appoint Mrs. Smith.  This is acceptable to the political boss, James Taylor (Edward Arnold) who thinks they will be able to control Mr. Smith.  

When he gets to Washington Smith meet the senior senator from his state, Senator Paine (Claude Raines).  He has been Smith's hero.   Smith proposes a boys camp, and it happens to be on and where they plan to put a dam, with lots of political graft.  Smith won't back down, the political boss frames him for profiteering as they have made it look like he owns the property for the boys camp.  He is to be expelled from congress, but not before he has his say.  He is lucky he meets Paine's secretary (Jean Arthur), who is assigned to him as she helps him.  He is new to Washington and she knows the ropes.  He is also helped by the leader of the Senate (Harry Carey).  He is not helped by Paine's daughter (Astrid Allyn) who keeps him occupied while political moves are made behind his back.  So the question is, can Mr. Smith talk his way out of the hole he is in and will the corruption ever be exposed.  

Enjoyable movie.  Who knew James Stewart could talk for so long.  Also interesting portrayal of the Senate and government corruption.  

Music Review: Selena: Mis Mejores Canciones (17 Super Èxitos)

Selena: Mis Mejores Canciones (17 Super Èxitos), EMI Latin 1993.

Selena is an American artist.  Although released before her death, this album became much more popular after her murder as it became the first Spanish language album to reach number one in the U.S.  And why not, there is much to like here.  I really like "Besito." It has a very nice rhythm to it.  This sog demarks Selena's cumbia style mising Spanish, Caribbean and African style.  

Necesito tus besitos cada noche, cada día
Dime, amorcito, que yo soy tu alegría
Dime, cariñito, que yo soy la dueña de tu corazón

I need your kisses every night, every day, Tell me love that I am your happiness, tell me my loved that I am the boss of your heart.  This song was written by A.B. Quintanilla, Selena's brother and Pedro Astudillo.  These two collaborated on most of the songs on the album.  

I also like "Mentiras" with its echoing style.

The Tejano music became very popular and Selena was a big part of this.  It is unfortunate that she was murdered by the president of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar, who had embezzled from Selena and this was coming to light.

Football Movie Review: ****^ We Are Marshall (2006)

 In 1970 the Marshall football was involved in a chartered plane crash with no survivors.  Four team members were not on the plane, staying home due to injury.  One assistant coach, Red Dawson (Matthew Fox) did not fly home as he was recruiting.  However the town, lead by one of the players, Nate Ruffin (Anthony Mackie) lets the college and college president Dedmon (David Strathairn) know that they do not want to give up the football program.  But Dawson does not want to be the coach.  The president finds another coach willing to keep the program alive, Hank Lengyel (Matthew McConaughey).  Rebuilding a program is not easy, and this movie deals with the struggle.  Marshall was not an instant success, but the won a couple games and the program stayed afloat.  Other charcters of not are the wives of the coaches (January Jones and Kimberly Williams-Paisley).  There is the steel mill own, whose son died on the plane, Paul Griffen (Ian McShane) and the girlfriend of the son and cheerleader Annie Cantrell (Kate Mara).  A very good movie about the struggle, and shows that the struggle is not always pretty, but it is still worth it.

Movie Review: ****^ Sweetwater (2023)

 Nat Clifton aka Sweetwater (Everett Osborne) is playing basketball for the Harlem Globetrotters.  This comes with difficulties, travel where Blacks are not accepted.  This was an interesting time.  Jackie Robinson had broken through the color barrier in baseball; but the NBA was still all White.  In 1950 three Black players broke this barrier, including Nat Clifton who was the first to sign, but due to scheduling not the first to play.  He tells his story working as a cab driver to a reporter (Jim Caviezel).  He was playing with the Globetrotters under Abe Saperstein (Kevin Pollack).  However the owner, Ned Irish (Cary Elwes) and the coach, Joe Lapchick (Jeremy Piven) of the Knicks want him to play in the Garden.  Jeremy Podoloff (Richard Dreyfuss) is the NBA commissioner and sees things changing.   Emmaline plays the singer in the bar singing soul who befriends Sweetwater.

I say this is a very good movie.  I like to watch films about racial injustice and this film is one of the more poignant I have seen.  I really like the relationship between Clifton as a cab driver and the passenger reporter.  

T.V. Review: Wingfeather Saga

 I have really been enjoying the first three seasons of the Wingfeather Saga.  This is on Angel Studios and based on the books written by Andrew Peterson.  I read the books previously, and found the universe created by Peterson fantastical and very enjoyable.  The animated series on Angel Studios captures this magic.  Basically the fangs--lizard creatures, have taken over the world, and the Igiby family, who are really the Wingfeather family and royalty from island kingdom of Anniera.  The Fangs are after the royal family they missed when they took over the island.  So the Wingfeathers are on the run.  There are three seasons available on Angel Studios and the fourth comes out this month.  I understand they are going to have seven seasons all together.  The first three seasons cover the first two of the four books pretty well.

The family is Janner (Alkaio Thiele), mother (Jodi Benson), grandfather (Kevin McNally), Leeli (Romy Fay), Uncle Artham (Henry Ian Cusick) and Tink/Kalmar (Griffin Robert Faulkner).  Matthew Rhys voices the Florid Sword and Andrew Peterson the family friend Oskar and Ari Elizabeth Johnson the friend Sara.  

Book Review: Remarkably Bright Creatures

 Remarkably Bright Creatures A Novel by Shelby Van Pelt, Harper Large Print, an Imprint of Harper Collins Publishers, 2022.

I had seen the movie on Netflex, but the book is even better.  It was very enjoyable with people strugging with the question who am I and where do I fit in.  I must admit even knowing what was going to happen, when it did happen I still cried.  Told from the perspective of an octopus is is very good.  A very good read I highly recommend.  

Steven Spielberg (producer) Movie Review: ****Super 8 (2011)

 A group of youth witness a train crash; but it is more than a train crash, and the government is covering something up.  There is an alien in the train wreckage and strange things start happening.  The youth are making a movie, and the camera rolls and caches the train crash.  The youth are Joe, Alice, Charles, Gabriel, Ryan and Zach (Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Riley Griffiths, Gabriel Basso, Ryan Lee and Zach Mills).  Charles is intent on making his movie, and the kids are actors or tech.  But in the end they find an alien instead, and understand his need to get home.  

A pretty good movie, but the alien getting home is very costly to the community.  Directed by J.J. Abrams.