Austenland - Movie Review

Don't waste your time.  This was one of the stupidest movies I've seen.... EVER.  I lasted for about 20 minutes before I had to shut it off - I could feel brain cells dying.

It features Jennifer Coolidge who is even worse in this than anything else I've seen her in - and I wasn't sure that was possible.  Also a total waste of Jane Seymour's talent!

Bleeeech!

The Monuments Men - Movie Review

Hubs and I watched this movie together.  We give it mixed reviews.  For those of you who don't know what it is about, the group of men pictured in this poster are not soldiers when WWII starts, but they are brought together as a special team for the purposes of protecting the art in Europe that hasn't yet been looted by the Nazis, and for finding and saving the art that has been stolen.  This is based on a true story, and each actor plays the role of a real person who was on this team.  The men come from quite varied backgrounds, but most of them are affiliated with the arts in some way - either as artists themselves, or historians or professors of art.  They have to go through basic training just like "regular" soldiers.

There were a number of things I liked about this movie.  Primarily I liked learning the story which I was not previously familiar with.  I am told that it is a relatively accurate portrayal.  I also liked the fact that much of it was filmed on location in France and other parts of Europe - I liked seeing the scenery in vintage '40s style.

As far as the cast goes, I have mixed feelings.  First, there is no denying that putting some of these men in uniform only heightens the "eye candy".  Come on ladies - who can deny that putting Clooney and Damon in uniform is a fabulous idea:

And then there's Hugh Bonneville (pictured in the center here).  Be still my heart.  He is the lead on Downton Abbey, playing head-of-household Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham.  Here we have my first big complaint.  Hugh's is the first character that dies in the movie, and it is early.  Seriously?  They killed off  His Lordship??  I was very disappointed!  

Indulge me for just a moment.......

Ok enough ....  back to the movie at hand.... forgive my digression.  

On the subject of the cast members.  In addition to these 3 hotties, we have John Goodman and Bill Murray.

Ok, John Goodman, I get.... and I can accept him in the movie.  While he is usually a comedian, he has done enough serious roles that I can believe him.  But Murray?  Seriously?  He is such a constant smartass that there was no way I could take him seriously.  Everytime he was on screen I expected him to say something silly.  To me, having him in the cast was a distraction.  

Also, the only key female role is played by Cate Blanchett.  If you've been keeping up with my movie reviews, you know she is EVERYWHERE!  The weird thing is (and maybe I shouldn't admit this) I didn't know that is who this was in the movie until the end and I saw the credits.  She looks totally different, and even as many times as I've seen her recently, I didn't recognize her.  Maybe the next time I see her she will be more internalized and I will recognize her?  We'll see. 

Cate plays the role of a French woman who works for the Nazis during the occupation, and eventually, once she trusts him, she helps Matt Damon's character find much of the hidden art.  Without her, it is doubtful that the group could have been as successful as they were.

So, here's the big complaint about the script of the movie: both Hubs and I found parts of it to be very confusing.  More than once we paused the movie to talk about what was going on.  It felt like they were trying to do too much too fast.  When it was over, I wanted to go back and watch it again to pick up on the things I missed the first time.  

Overall, I would recommend it for the story and the historical aspects, but don't expect it to be a well-written script, and don't expect stellar acting from some of the actors.  Even Clooney and Damon, as good as they are, could have been lifted directly from the set of Oceans Eleven and put in WWII army uniforms as far as their acting went. 

If you've seen the movie and want to share your opinion, please do so!

Thanks for reading!

:)Amy

New Hampshire Museum Visits

In a recent visit to New Hampshire (aka Nude Hamster), I had the opportunity to visit 3 very different museums.

First, there was the Christa McAuliffe - Alan Shepard Discovery Center in Concord.  Go to Museum Website here.

This was a small museum, (and felt even smaller with 3 bus loads of young school kids running around), but the exhibits were informative and well-done.  There was a large section that talked about lunar photography - the equipment needed and the techniques used.  There were also displays of objects used on space missions: 

This is a backpack used for space walks - it weighs about 300 pounds.  The museum worker on duty said that if we ever find ourselves in space, we shouldn't do what the actors did in the movie Gravity, or we would soon be dead.  They also had a display of a toilet used on the space station.  Somehow I neglected to photograph that, even with the docent demonstrating it! They also had a jet ejector seat, and several other pieces of space equipment.  

This is an XF8U-2 Crusader Jet for which Alan Shepard was a test-pilot.  Eventually this will be hung from a NASA atrium ceiling.  

There were models and displays about the careers of both of these astronauts, but there was one significant display that seemed to be missing.  After touring the whole museum, I found nothing about the 1986 Challenger Disaster.  Finding this a curious omission, I approached the same museum worker to ask if I had missed a display.  He looked at me with a strange expression, and said, "You aren't from around here are you?"  "No, I'm from Ohio," I explained.  That seemed to explain everything to him - "everything" being the ignorance of my question.  He went on to explain to me that "it's just too soon."

The Shuttle Challenger exploded about 1 minute after take off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 28, 1986.  That is almost 30 years ago.  The museum worker went on to explain to me that every school child in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts saw the explosion live on television, and everyone was traumatized by the event.  The school systems in New England had to bring in thousands of counselors to help the children deal with the trauma of what they saw.  So, for the people of New England, mentioning the disaster in the museum is too painful.  The family of McAuliffe has also asked the museum to focus on her life and accomplishments rather than on her death.

While I understand the sensitivity of this subject, and the delicate steps that this museum has to walk, I really feel they are doing a disservice to their visitors.  It seems to me that part of the purpose of a museum is to teach the facts of their subject.  Do we have Holocaust museums that don't mention the death of Jewish people because it is too painful to their families, or because everyone already knows how they died?  

I'm not suggesting that this museum has to show video of the event, but I do think there should be some mention of it even in a small discreet corner display.  To omit it is to deny an important fact of history which the space program actually learned from.  Of course, this is my opinion, and was clearly not shared by the museum worker with whom I spoke  nor with its director and decision-making board.  I found myself wondering what the young children who were in the museum had been told about this space mission.

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The second museum I visited was the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester.  Go to museum website here.

This front sculpture is called "Origins" and was done by Mark Di Suvero in 2001-2004.

This third photo was the original exterior entrance to the museum, but it is now in the courtyard of the museum cafe as a new section was added in front of it.  

I have to say I was very impressed by this museum.  It was very well done and contained many important works of art.  They have permanent collections of European, American, Contemporary, Modern, Decorative, and New Hampshire Art.  I really felt like I was in a miniature version of a large classic museum from New York or Chicago.  Much of the permanent collection can be seen on the website. 

This was the first painting that caught my eye.  It was done in 1897 and is titled A Knock at the Door.  This is by English artist Laura Alma-Tadema.  She was popular in her day, and was considered a 'first wave feminist'.   I was fortunate to find a matted print of this painting in the museum gift shop, so I now have it framed and hanging on my bedroom wall!  I was struck by the fact that the fame itself looks like a mirror frame as it houses a painting of someone looking in the mirror.  I was also struck by the fact that to me the head tilt in the mirror's reflection doesn't match the head tilt of the woman looking in the mirror, and would we really be able to see that much of a face if we were looking from this angle behind the woman's head?  In spite of these issues, I found the painting quite charming. 

Another painting that I was lucky enough to bring home and hang on my wall is this one called Freeman Farm: Winter 1935 by American artist Maxfield Parrish who died in 1966 in New Hampshire.  What struck me about this one was the glow of the sun behind the house which is so intense it looks like the painting is lighted from behind.  I marvel that he was able to achieve that effect.  

There was also a lot of great furniture in the museum.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Loveseat called "True Loves Blue" was done by Jon Brooks in 2000.

"Distant Thunder" - 2001 - Wendell Keith Castle - Peruvian Walnut with oil finish.  

This last chair was designed by architectural great Frank Lloyd Wright and is a sort of recliner - made in 1902-03.  It also just so happens that this museum is affiliated with the only public Frank Lloyd Wright house in New England called the Zimmerman House.  Tours have to be booked through the museum and the house is accessed only by museum vans by reservation.  I would LOVE to see this house, and it is on my To-Do list for a future visit.  Here is an internet photo of the house:  

The Currier Museum (no relationship to Currier and Ives, by the way)  also has a wing in which they feature temporary exhibits.  While we were there, we saw a special exhibit by artist Romare Bearden who did a series of works called "A Black Odyssey". This is a series of works that tell the story from the classic Greek Odyssey by Homer but with African figures portrayed in the scenes.  His point was to make the story accessible to African-American students by helping them see how the story was really universal.  

My summary of a trip to this museum would not be complete without including 1 more photo.  I neglected to note the artist, but I still want to share this work because I found it fascinating:

The wood is exquisite and the carving is excellent!  It is whimsical, and yet it has a serious subject of Motherhood.   I found it thought-provoking.  

Another thought-provoking piece was this by artist Marisol Escobar, an American born in Paris in 1930.  This work is called The Family and was done in 1963.  It was actually on the cover of Time magazine on Dec. 28, 1970, to introduce an article about the crisis of the American family.  The stylish mother is decked out in gloves and a pill-box hat as she takes her 4 children for a walk.  The doll being carried by the 3-legged child has a self-portrait of the artist.  She used found objects and an influence of Cubism to capture the materialism of post-war America.

Visit the website to see more about this lovely museum, and be sure to stop in the next time you are in Manchester, N.H.  They also have a great gift shop where I was able to get some nice jewelry and a set of Frank Lloyd Wright inspired placemats.  

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The third and final museum visit for this trip was outside.  It was the Andres Institute of Art in Brookline, NH.  Visit museum website here.  This is an outdoor sculpture collection built along the hiking trails of Big Bear Mountain.  It was started in 1996 by Paul Andres who bought the land and built a house at the top.  There is one trail for cars, but most of the sculptures can only be seen by hiking.  Some of the foot trails are very steep and only for diehard hikers.  Other paths are more for normal walkers.  You can download a trail map that tells you how steep they are and how long each should take.   Cousin and I stayed in the car.  The terrain is hilly and woodsy.  Little clearings are cut out along the road for the sculptures.  We didn't get out of the car to read any of the artist info, but most of the sculptures can be seen on the website.  Here are some of the ones we saw:

This is the first set of sculptures on the car trail, and it is intimidating.  These are lifesize metal cutouts of armed military guys on patrol, and there are about 8 of them placed around in the trees.

This is the gate at the start of the trails.  

The museum is free and contains dozens of sculptures that are quite varied in theme, material and size.  

Those are my museum experiences for this trip.  Thanks for letting me share with you!  What museums have YOU visited lately?  I want to see your pictures too!

:)Amy  

Edith Head Visits Lancaster, Ohio

Welcome to Lancaster, Ohio, home of the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio,

 and this summer, the home of visiting Costume Designer,  Edith Head.  

First, let me clarify: Edith Head passed away in 1981, so "she" wasn't actually in Lancaster, but a museum there hosted a fabulous exhibit of some of her work.  For those of you who don't know her, she was the main costume designer at Paramount Pictures from 1924-1967, and she won 8 Academy Awards for her work.  

Edith had a BA from UC Berkeley, and an MA from Stanford, but she never studied costume design.  It just came naturally to her.  She began as a costume sketch artist.  But enough bio stuff....  you can read more about her life on Wikipedia if you are interested.  Let's move on to the exhibit!  

My traveling companion (here after referred to as TC) and I had never been to Lancaster before.  We were immediately impressed by how lovely the town is.  There are many well tended historic homes and several museums in the downtown area.  The Decorative Arts Center of Ohio is in a building called the Reese-Peters House which dates back to 1835.  The first floor is decorated with period furniture to represent the house as it would have been  in its heyday.  The second floor is for special exhibits.  There is another building on the property called the Wendel Center for Art Education, and of course there is a delightful, ubiquitous gift shop.  

TC and I both agreed that this exhibit was very well done!  A large grand staircase swept from the first floor to the second with actresses in Edith Head designs leading the way.  

From the top of the stairs hung movie reels with pieces of film hanging down identifying the names of her Academy Award winning films.  Very clever!

The exhibit consisted of 4 rooms and the central hallway where the clothing was displayed.  One of the most clever parts of the exhibit was the use of technology.  In each room was an iPad on a stand.  The screen showed the costumes in the room, and when you touched a photo, a movie clip would play showing the opening movie title sequence, the credits, and then a scene where the costume was worn.  This part of the exhibit was really great and added so much to the write-ups of the clothing.  

It was amazing to be able to compare the clothing we were seeing in person to the images on the screen.  It was clear just how much the camera can distort its subject!  Here are some examples of what I mean:

This dress was worn by Joan Fontaine in the 1950 movie September Affair.  Much of the beaded detail of the bodice was lost in the black and white movie.  In person, this dress is magnificent!  The dress also appears to be white in the movie.  

These costumes were worn by Arlene Dahl and Bob Hope in the 1953 Here Come the Girls.  You can see the golden color of this dress with a pink ruffle in my photo above.  In the black and white display photo it appeared white (below), and the color of the ruffle was totally washed out.  However, in the color movie clip, the whole dress appeared to be a pink/lavender color. I don't know if the movie was colorized, or if that was the original version, but it was interesting to see how much black and white photography and colored filming affected the true color of the dress.  

Speaking of color versus black & white film, I noticed early on that a dress that was a dark rust color in person looked black in the movie.  I asked the docent on duty if Edith designed with the use of b&w filming in mind.  It turns out she did, and that is why she often wore large glasses with dark-tinted lenses.  She said she wanted to view the world as a black and white camera does.  

One of the dresses I found most interesting was very simple and made of silk.  It was worn by Carroll Baker in 1965's Harlow.  It was a bias cut, cream silk charmeuse.  In the movie, the star falls into a fountain, and as you can see from the picture below, the dress becomes her skin.  What I marveled at was that the silk survived that water.  I am curious as to how this was cleaned after the filming.  

Along the walls of the display rooms were quotes.  This is a good one:  

The center dress is this display was worn by Mae West in She Done Him Wrong from 1933.  This got my vote for "favorite costume" out of 4 shown for museum guests to pick from.  When we voted, the 4 options were running neck & neck.  

Here is Edith shown with a list of the movies she won her Oscars for.  Interestingly, none of these movies were represented with clothing in this show.  

My friend, TC had this to say about the show:  "The Edith Head exhibit was a lovely treat for fans who are nostalgic for the glamour of old Hollywood!"  I agree! Here are some of her favorite costumes:

This was worn by 2 actresses in the same film as part of the plot was the 2 women show up at a party wearing the same dress.  TC said she had a bridesmaid dress with a similar print. 

The one at the right here was from an Elvis Presley movie - this got TC's vote for "favorite".  (Note, the one at the left is the one I said looked black in the movie.)

This was worn by Jane Russell, and of course she looked amazing in it!  

We noticed that in the movie where this black dress was worn, the "drops" were very sparkly - it was much more impressive with movie lighting on it. But TC commented that this was something that could easily be worn today. Indeed several of the styles on display were classics that could be worn now.    The dress at the right with the fish decals wasn't worn in a movie.  It was made for a promotional photograph.  

We also commented that all of the costumes were very small.  Of course, they were made for Hollywood glamour girls with curvy figures and small waists, but most of these were tiny-tiny.  Our docent said that Edith designed specifically for each person and worked to hide their flaws and accentuate their assets.  

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TC and I topped off our visit to this exhibit with lunch at a place called Shaw's Restaurant.  This a lovely restaurant in a hotel in downtown Lancaster, just a couple of blocks from all the museums.  The food was very good, and I can highly recommend it to my readers who visit Lancaster in the future.

This exhibit is on through August 17, so if you are local and can make it to Lancaster, please let me know what YOUR favorites were!

Thanks for reading!
:)Amy (and TC!)

Mrs. Poe - Book Review

I just finished reading Mrs. Poe by Lynn Cullen.  I found the book to be engaging and frustrating at the same time.  In general I would say I liked it, and I'm glad I read it, but I'm still not sure what to make of it.  

The book is historical fiction, and Ms. Cullen talks at length in an "Author's Note" at the end about how she researched the history of the characters and the setting.  For her it was important that everything in the story "could" have happened.   The story begins in New York City in 1845 after Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven" has just been published.  The main character is a young poet named Frances Osgood who becomes linked with Poe both professionally and romantically.  In many ways this is a classic example of a gothic romance where there is intrigue and drama with slowly building sexual tension.

The title ambiguously refers to both the real Mrs. Poe, his young bride Virginia, and Mrs. Osgood who is actually mistaken for his wife more than once in the book.  Virginia Poe and Frances Osgood become friends early in the book when Virginia declares she is a fan of Fanny's poetry.  This friendship is strained at times as the romance between Frances and Edgar heats up, and at times the friendship is a useful excuse for Frances and Edgar to get to see each other.  Virginia's mother Mrs. Clemm (Muddy, as she was called by Poe) also plays a large role in the story.  

My enjoyment in the book was just in getting lost in the story and the time.  It was engaging and easy to read.  However, my frustration was in not knowing what was true and what was fiction.  Having taught Poe for many years in school, I'm fairly familiar with his biography and with the common thinking about what he was like.  This book confused what I thought I knew with this author's interpretation of some of his biography.  The book also talks a LOT about many of the other important writers and editors of the day.  Margaret Fuller, Horace Greeley and poet Rufus Griswold figured heavily, and Louisa May Alcott is also mentioned as are many other contemporaries of theirs such as Walt Whitman.  Poe and Osgood attended many salons which were a who's-who of the literati of the time. 

Frances Osgood was married to Samuel Stillman Osgood, an important portrait painter.  He was a well-known philanderer who left her and their 2 children high and dry to go off and paint wealthy women who often became his lovers.  He eventually came home again, but his reputation affected them in many ways.

One thing I found interesting was the description of Lower Manhattan and Greenwich Village from the 1840's.  Central Park was just in discussion at that time, and not everyone thought it was a good idea or necessary.  Manhattan was largely undeveloped.  Cullen also talks about touring Trinity Church as a scene from the book is set there.  She tried to go to all the places she wanted to write about - whether they still existed or had changed - to get a feel for the setting.  

I also found interesting the ideas of marriage that were mentioned.  Divorce was not acceptable at that time, so many couples lived very unhappy lives or had other relationships.  On one hand that lifestyle seemed to be accepted and understood, yet it was still the subject of gossip and ridicule.  There was much talk of a person's "reputation".  You had a bad reputation if you got divorced, and you had a bad reputation if you had an affair.  The characters commented that very few couples had "good" marriages.

I must say, reading this book has inspired me to do some research into the events and lives of some of the people mentioned.  I would recommend this book to lovers of Poe and 19th Century American literature, but I will say it needs to be read with a grain of salt, and the realization that much of it could be fiction.  

If you read it, let me know your thoughts!

:) Amy

Bessie's One Year Anniversary!

I have been negligent in not reporting on Bessie's BIG milestone.  On June 11, 2014, she celebrated her 1 year anniversary since surgery.  We celebrated by going to the surgeon where she got a great report.  He took another couple of x-rays, and said everything looks great!  I don't need to go back for 5 years.  (Let's see if I remember that in 2019...)

One question I asked my surgeon was if there are any parts inside that could work themselves loose over time, and he said no.  The only thing that might need attention at some point in the future is the plastic plate that is between the 2 "bones" that rub together.  (This would have been the meniscus, originally, which is what was worn away.)  He said that this plastic plate can wear down over time, but it wears at a very very slow rate, and most people are never affected by it.  If it wears down enough that it is noticeable, it can be replaced with a simple surgery, but let's hope that never happens with Bess!

Tonight I went back and read my entries here from that first 10 days after surgery.  She was still dead-weight at that point.  Ah yes, how well I remember.  Just last night I laid in bed and lifted my leg high in the air and reminded Hubs that I couldn't do that last year at this time.

Doc asked me if there was anything I wanted to be able to do that I can't do now.  I told him that I need to work on stairs because I don't have any in my daily life unless I go out of my way to find some.  I told him that I can do stairs as long as I have something to hold on to, but I'm not confident, and I want to get stronger with that.  Hubs made me a box to step on last year for PT and I can still use that for practice.  I'm going to start doing that daily.

Doc also asked me about the other knee.  I told him that I originally was thinking I'd wait 2 or 3 years and get the other one done, but now I'm not sure I need it done.  He said that is very common.  Once the new knee is up and running at full capacity, it takes much of the pressure off the other "bad" one, so it is not as strained.  I think that is what is happening with me.  Of course, that whole leg is still out of alignment which ultimately affects the way I walk, so it might be a good idea to have it done anyway.  That will also help my hips if I am walking straight with both legs.

I must say, my quality of life has improved immensely because of my surgery!  Just last week, I flew to New Hampshire and back.  My walking in the airport was very easy this year, and I didn't have to stop to rest my knees half way down the concourse as I did the last time I went. I even thought to myself as I walked up the Jetway from the plane to the airport that my knee didn't hurt at all!   I still can't really bend them as tightly as I could "back in the day", so getting in and out of a car can be a small challenge, but I do have more than 105 degrees on Bessie and just a little under 100 on Tillie, so I "can" do what I need to do.

So, that's my 1-year-milestone update.  I really can't complain at all about the process or the progress.  Everything turned about better than I ever thought was possible!  YAY !!

I appreciate your support - thanks for sticking with me!

:)Amy

Before Midnight - Movie Review

Ok, there is no way I can talk about this movie without spoiling the ending of the previous movie, so prepare for a tiny spoiler...

Before Midnight is the 3rd (and so far, last) in the series, and was produced in 2013.  Again - 9 years after Sunset.

This movie opens with Jesse saying goodbye to his son at the airport, and we learn that he and his family are vacationing in Greece for 6 weeks.  His family is now Celine and their twin daughters, and his son with Jesse's first wife who lives in Chicago.

As the movie progresses we learn about how he missed his flight at the end of the previous movie, and eventually, he left his wife for Celine.  They lived together in New York for awhile, but eventually moved to Paris, where she has a successful career, and he is still a writer.  He wrote a follow-up book about their second meeting.

During an early conversation that Jesse has with some of his male friends, we also learn more about Jesse's writing career and some other ideas he has for new books.  I must say some of these ideas are fascinating, and I'd love to actually read these books!

This movie is somewhat different than the first 2 in that it incorporates more people, mostly friends they are vacationing with.  They have some good, in-depth, conversations with these people at dinner. It is very interesting adult conversation about sex and relationships and marriage.   After dinner, Jesse and Celine walk to a hotel where they have been given a room for the night as a gift - without their daughters.  It is on their walk to the hotel and during their time in the room that we see them as they were in the previous movies - focused on each other and their relationship.

Both characters have aged (they are now 41) and have matured.  Both of these changes show in their conversations.  However, the basis of who they are together really hasn't changed.  A large part of their conversation is a  fight which ends with Celine boldly telling Jesse that she doesn't love him any more and walking out the door.

As was the case with the first 2 movies, the primary focus here is on their conversation with each other in real time.  However, to me, this movie felt even more real than the first 2.  It is sexy and funny in places, and these 2 people really seem like a couple.  (They are not married.)  It is clear that Jesse is head-over-heels in love with Celine, and he has made huge sacrifices to have a life with her, while she remains a bit strong-headed and temperamental.  At one point he calls her "The Mayor of CrazyTown", and that is pretty accurate.

One clever writing bit from this movie is when he is making up with her after the fight, he picks a napkin up off the table and says it is a letter she wrote back to her younger self from her 82 year old self.  He "reads" it to her, and through it is able to soften her and get her to talk to him again.  As the movie ends, they are "together" once again.

Another thing I liked about this movie was accurate and realistic references to cell phones, computers, Skipe, etc.... and some realistic references to the role that computers now have in relationships.  This movie doesn't try to pretend that the internet has not affected life as we know it.  I found that refreshing.  (Especially after Nebraska which was supposedly set now and yet no one had cell phones!)

It seems to me there HAS to be another movie in 2022.  Right?  And every 9 years until they are both dead.  There just HAS to be!

Well, again, I highly recommend this trilogy, and I recommend watching all 3 in short succession.  Then you can wait another 8 year with the rest of us!

Happy Viewing, and thanks for reading my reviews!
:)Amy