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Friday, June 19, 2020

Fool's Views (5/23 – 5/31)


"Your motivation skills are very persuasive, Fraulein..."

Howdy, folks!

Apologies for the delay. I’ll be honest, I was having a hard time finding motivation casting my mind toward cinematic criticism in light of current events. I hope you are all doing okay. I know it’s been stressful on multiple levels and it’s not like we had a lot in the tank to begin with.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been reading numerous statements from organizations, as I’m sure you have, stating their positions on the state of the world and their place in it. For my part, I have been doing my best to show up, shut up, and listen up, because it is not necessarily my voice that needs to be heard at this time but rather my presence as an empathetic and supportive citizen of the world.

When the #metoo movement gained national attention a few years back, I felt confident that I was already on the “right” side. I identified as feminist. Previous October Scare-a-Thons had donated to Planned Parenthood, Resilience, American Women’s Self Defense Organization, and Chicago’s Greenhouse Shelter. I was even a member of an anti-sexual harassment organization, Not In Our House (Chicago). But, to be an effective ally, there was still more I could do. So I did more.

I feel the same way regarding Black Lives Matter. There is absolutely more I can do, more voices to be heard, more lessons to be learned, more action items to be taken, and I am dedicated to being a better ally. As in all things, it’s about gathering information, exploring options, and making choices, decisions, and commitments. I invite all of us to do the same. We can all do better – key word “DO.” Action is everything.

And that’s enough out of me about that.

We have a lot to get to, including the first-ever online version of Turkey Day in May, the first installment of Kicking the Seat’s "Accademia Giallo," another pair of rock docs, and stand-up people doing stand-up, so let’s just dive right in, shall we?

As always, feel free to leave your two cents worth – we’ll make sure you get some change back.

Enjoy!

Friday, June 5, 2020

DREAMLAND (2019) Movie Review



Dreamland (2019) d. Bruce McDonald (Canada-Luxembourg-Belgium) (92 min)

In an unnamed European city, a hired assassin named Johnny (Stephen McHattie) foils a child-trafficking scheme, an assignment that he performs with righteous relish. Upon completion, he discovers to his dismay that his employer Hercules (Henry Rollins) has ordered the hit so that he could take over the booming kiddie prostitution business. Johnny contemplates breaking ties with the Herc, who asks him to perform one last job: procure the little finger of famed jazz musician The Maestro (McHattie as well) who has been hired to play at the upcoming wedding of the Countess’ (Juliette Lewis) brother, a honest-to-fangs vampire (Tomas Lemarquis) who has chosen one of Hercules’ latest acquisitions as his virgin child bride.