Covid, Movies, a Documentary, and Trash TV

Yes, my friends,  Covid has reared its ugly head again and has knocked Yours Truly on his butt since Sunday.  The good news is that the Paxlovid scrip that I received yesterday seems to be working, and I can detect some improvement in my condition.  Still feel like shit, but improving.  One side effect of this condition has been an inability to sleep at night, which has led to me watching a lot of television late at  night, which has given me some grist for what I hope will be an informative and entertaining Blog Entry.

Before all that, though, a gripe.

In case you've been living under a rock for that last six months or so, the movie "Wicked" opened this past Friday.  I believe that the first time I saw a commercial for this movie was during the Super Bowl last February. Since then, I have seen the trailer for it every time I've gone to the theater, and in the last six weeks or so, the publicity and hype campaign for the November 22 release  date of "Wicked" has been wall-to-wall and over the top even by Hollywood's standards.   What was never mentioned, not once, in all of this lead up was that this movie is only PART 1 of the movie.  It takes you only up to the ending of Act One of the stage play/musical.  That part only became known a few days prior to the November 22 release date.   If you want to see the entire film adaptation of this great musical, you have to wait until November of 2025 when they release PART 2.

Does this strike anyone else as being just a tad unfair?

Okay, now that I got that off of my chest, here's what I've been watching lately.

Remembering Gene Wilder (Netflix)

This is an absolutely terrific documentary about the late Gene Wilder.  It tells of he professional partnerships with Mel Brooks and Richard Pryor, his marriage to Gilda Radnor and the tragedy of her death, and his subsequent marriage to Karen Webb, who was with him up until his death in 2016 due to Alzheimer's Disease.

You see all kinds of clips from Wilder's extensive filmography that will make you laugh, for sure, but the story of  Wilder finding love a second time after losing his wife to  cancer is what struck home for me.  The story of Wilder's last day when he went for a swim in their pool and his last words to Karen are poignant beyond belief.

Among those interviewed for this doc are Mel Brooks, Richard Pryor's daughter, and Karen Wilder.

Three Stars from The Grandstander.

Woman of the Hour (Netflix)

This movie is based upon the true story of serial killer Rodney Alcala who somehow managed to appear as a contestant on The Dating Game back in 1978.  Anna Kendrick, who also directed this movie, plays Sheryl Bradshaw (no relation to Terry), a wannabe/failing   actress in Los Angeles whose agent gets her a gig on the Dating Game in order for her to be "seen".   Of course, she picks Alcala to be her date.  In both the movie and in real life, Bradshaw never went on the date with him because he creeped her out entirely after she actually met him, and she bailed on the whole deal.  According to the title cards at the end of the movie, Bradshaw "lived her life and raised a family".  After being convicted of multiple murders, Alcala died in prison in 2021 at the age of 77.

Some guy named Daniel Zovatto plays Alcala in as creepy a way as possible, which, I suppose, makes him a good actor.  The whole movie was kind of creepy and not all that great, but it was only 1 hour and 35 minutes long, so it had that going for it.

One Star from The Grandstander.

Now for the trash....

Chimp Crazy (Max)

This one is a four part series that, I think, was hoping to ride the coattails of that "Tiger King" docu-series that everyone in the world watched while quarantined during the COVID pandemic a few years back.  This one is about a woman named Tonia Haddix (no relation to Harvey) and her affinity for raising and maintaining chimpanzees, particularly one named Tonka, who appeared in a couple of Hollywood movies, her never ending battles with PETA, and the underground world of people who deal with and own exotic pets.

What you learn from watching this is that there is just no end to the number of people in this world who are just out and out batshit crazy.

Late Night Lockup (Max)

Okay, I found this one totally by accident while scrolling the Max home screens at two in the morning.  They are half hour shows that show videos taken from police officer body cameras and closed circuit TV's in police cars, police stations, and local lockups of arrests that are made - are you ready - "after the sun goes down, when things get really crazy."  All of the arrests that I have seen (I've watched three of these episodes, but there are three seasons of this show available for your viewing pleasure out there) involve people who are completely and totally falling down drunk.   Nothing good comes from drinking excessively, is the lesson to be learned here, although I don't think that the producers are out to impart lessons with this show as much as just show nothing but a bunch of human train wrecks.

It's entertaining in a manner of speaking, but not something that you would want to binge watch for hours on end.

AsI have already classified these shows as "trash tv" they get Zero Stars from The Grandstander, but you might want to give them a try yourself, just for the freak show value of them.

Let Us the Salute 2024 National League Rookie of the Year

Congratulations, Paul Skenes, on a well deserved honor.  Speaking on behalf of all Pirates fans, we are sure going to enjoy watching you wearing the Black & Gold for the next 4 to 5 seasons, or until Bob Nutting decides he can't, or won't, pay you what you're worth and trades you for a bunch of other teams' prospects flotsam and jetsam.

 

Big Football Weekend and A New GPR

Well, it was an amazing NFL Sunday yesterday with the two biggest games on the docket, Steelers-Ravens and Bills-Chiefs, more that living up to all of the pregame hype.

The Steelers 18-16 win over the Ravens was not the offensive  tour de force for which we had hoped.  All of the Steelers points came off of the foot of Chris Boswell who chalked up his second six field goal game of the season.

It surely was disappointing that the Steelers couldn't have notched a couple of TD's on their several trips into the red zone yesterday, but what was certainly not a disappointment was the performance of the Steelers defense, which held presumptive league MVP  Lamar Jackson in check and forced two critical turnovers, including a youth-had-to-see-it-to-believe-it interception by rookie linebacker Peyton Wilson.

Of course, in typical Ravens-Steelers fashion, it all came down to the end of the game when Joey Porter Jr chased down Jackson and foiled a two point conversion attempt that would have tied the game and sent it into overtime.  The Steelers were then able to run out the clock and secure the win.

The Steelers have now won eight of the last nine games against the Ravens, and Jackson has now dropped to 1-4 against the Black and Gold.  That may seem lopsided, but none of these games have been easy, and Steelers-Ravens remains the best rivalry in the NFL,  and we get to see them go at it again December 21.

The other big game yesterday was the 8-2 Bills against the 9-0 Chiefs, and QB's Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes.  Trailing 23-21 late in the game, it appeared that Mahomes and the Chiefs would get the ball back late and have the opportunity to pull another win out of their hats and remain undefeated.  That was until Allen made an electrifying 25 yard run from scrimmage on third-and-two, that secured the win for the Bills, 30-21.

I had mentioned above that Jackson is currently the "presumptive League MVP", and last week I mentioned in another forum, why is this just being ceded to him ten, and now eleven, weeks into the season?  I had mentioned the Lions' Jarod Goff, who had another huge game yesterday, as a legit candidate, but there are sure other guys who seem at least as worthy. Guys like Allen and Mahomes to name two, and what about the Eagles' Saquon Bakley?  The MVP doesn't have to be a quarterback, does he?  The Steelers muzzling of Jackson yesterday might bring him back to the field a bit in this race, but it will be fun to watch and see how it goes from here.

After what was a great week of football (I'm not counting a potential MNF snoozer between Dallas and Houston tonight), let's update the Grandstander Power Rankings through Week 11.

1. Lions 9-1 (Last Week - 1)
2. Bills 9-2 (3)
3. Chiefs 9-1 (2)
4. Steelers 8-2 (5)
5. Eagles 8-2 (6)
6. Ravens 7-4 (4)
7. Vikings 8-2 (7)
8. Chargers 7-3 (Unranked)
9. Falcons 6-5 (9)
10. Commanders 7-4 (7)

Also receiving consideration: Broncos 6-5, Cardinals 6-4.

If I was honest I night have the Eagles ahead of the Steelers, but, what the hell, it's my poll, so I'm giving my favorite team the edge here.  They play each other on December 15, so that question will be answered on the field.

Sporting Thoughts

A scattershot look from The Grandstand at recent happenings in the World of Sports.

Steelers 28 - Washington Football Team 27

Najee rumbles

George Pickens does magic

Russ drops one down the 

chimney to Mike Williams

In a week that can be described as "depressing" for some of us sitting in the Grandstand, the Steelers road win on Sunday over the Washington Commanders can be rightly described as "euphoric".  The Steelers were coming off a bye week and were 6-2, and the Commanders with their terrific rookie QB Jaydon Daniels were the surprise of the league at  7-2.  In all honesty, I was expecting a Steelers loss on Sunday.   The nature of the win....a Steelers defense severely limiting Daniels, overcoming a double digit second half deficit, and the dime that Russell Wilson dropped to newly acquired Mike Williams with a little over two minutes to play for the go ahead touchdown....it was, well...euphoric!

I have not written much about the Steelers or the NFL so far this season, so let's reflect a bit.  Sunday's win gives the Steelers a 7-2 record and a half game lead over the 7-3 Ravens, and sets ups a BIG GAME this Sunday when Baltimore comes to Pittsburgh.  It will be the first divisional game that the Steelers will play and the stakes are, well, big.  First place in the division, tie-breaker advantages, and blah blah blah.  At the beginning of the year, I felt that Baltimore would be in the Super Bowl, and Lamar Jackson is playing at a level that will probably bring him a third MVP Award.  However, the Ravens have shown some defensive vulnerability and a strange propensity for blowing leads late in games.  I have often said that there is no better rivalry in the NFL over the last 15 or so years than Steelers-Ravens, and this week should prove to add to the luster of these games.  And expect to hear the TV announcers trot out the Mike Tomlin-John Harbaugh to George Halas-Curly Lambeau comparisons.

After that 6-2 start, the Steelers post-bye schedule appeared, and still does appear, to be a brutal one:  all six divisional games, plus the Commanders, Eagles, and Chiefs.  They already have notched one W from that gauntlet.  The rest of the way won't be any easier, but with how the team looked against the WFT, I am anxiously awaiting the next eight weeks, but, of course, I'll be taking them all one game at a time.

Grandstander Power Rankings

Not sure how regularly I'm going to do this, but here is my first GPR of the season, submitted without comment:

1. Lions 8-1
2. Chiefs 9-0
3. Bills 8-2
4. Ravens 7-3
5. Steelers 7-2
6. Eagles 7-2
7. Commanders 7-2
8. Vikings 7-2
9. Falcons 6-4
10. Cardinals 6-4

Others receiving consideration: Bengals 4-6, Broncos 5-5, Chargers 6-3, Texans 6-4.

Dodgers Win World Series

The Dodgers five game World Series win over the Yankees was just a little over two weeks ago, yet it already feels like so long ago, so I don't want to let it recede into the mists of history without a few comments.

First off, a Dodgers-Yankees face off was an exciting prospect, because it would pit the two greatest offensive players in the game today in a showdown against each other, Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers and Aaron Judge of the Yankees.  That was going to cause fireworks like we hadn't seen since Reggie Jackson turned into Mr. October.  Well, it didn't turn out that way.  Over the 162 game season, Ohtani and Judge combined to hit .315 with 112 home runs and 274 runs batted in.  In the five game series, they combined to hit .162 (6-for-37) with 1 HR and 3 RBI.

And then there was that fifth game.  After four innings the Yanks led 5-0, Gerrit Cole hadn't surrendered a hit through four innings, Judge had hit a home run, and the Yankees appeared to be cruising to a win that would extend the Series to a sixth game.  Then it all fell apart in a way that only baseball can deliver to us.  Aaron Judge, who hadn't committed an error all season (you can look it up), dropped a routine fly ball in center, short stop Anthony Volpe made a throwing error, and then, inexplicably, Cole failed to cover first base on a ground ball to first, and BOOM, the Dodgers had tied it 5-5 and were on their way to a 7-6 win in Game 5 and a World Series Championship.  Overall, perhaps it won't go down as one of the Great World Series of our time, but that fifth game, and especially that fifth inning, will make it a memorable one for sure.

Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, playing with an injured ankle that would probably have put him on the injured list in the regular season, was the Most Valuable Player of the Series.  He batted .300, had a Series record tying 12 RBI, and hit 4 home runs.  The first of those was an extra innings walk off grand slam that, in retrospect, may have effectively ended the Series right then and there.   The MVP Award for this Series was never in doubt.

Freeman came to the majors full time with the Braves in 2011.  In those days I was still playing fantasy baseball, and I always coveted him for my team, but he always got drafted by someone else before I had the chance to nab him.  From the start he was, as my Dad would have put it, "a nice looking ball player."  He was a good player from the start, and he seems to be a likable guy as well.  He always seems to chat up and laugh with other players whenever they reach first base, which I think is kind of cool to see.  Through 15 seasons, he has hit .300 with 343 HR and over 1,200 RBI.  Next year will be his age 35 season, and he appears to still have gas in the tank, so an eventual landing spot in Cooperstown is not hard to imagine.  I will look forward to still watching him play.

College Football

What with conference realignments, NIL money, the transfer portal, and a twelve team Playoff, the business model of college football is well on the way to becoming Major League Baseball.  If you follow the sport, you know exactly what I am talking about, so I needn't spell it out for you here.  Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing is still TBD, but one thing for sure is that this 2024 season has produced some absolutely terrific match-ups and games, and seems to be doing it on weekly basis.  I cannot recall a season where I have looked forward to at least one game every single weekend as much as I have this season, and it shows no signs of stopping right up on through the conclusion of the CFP Championship game on January 20, so at least there will be one good thing that will happen on that day.

Movie Time - "Here"

 

Back in 1994 the creative team of director Robert Zemeckis, screenwriter Eric Roth, and actors Robin Wright and Tom Hanks gave us the multi-Oscar winning (Picture, Director, Screenwriter, and Lead Actor) "Forrest Gump", and this fact has been heavily touted in the publicity for this one, "HERE", wherein that whole creative team has been reunited.

This movie is about one house, one particular room of the house, actually, and the people who have lived there and the events that took place in that room over the course of a hundred years or so, and even many eons ago as well (trust me on that point.).

The cinematic trick that makes this movie unique is that it is filmed with a stationary camera.  People move in and out of the room, but the camera doesn't follow them; it stays on the room. You know that there is a kitchen, a dining room, a back door etc. behind that fourth wall, but you only see the room.  Makes it somewhat like watching a play.

Many families have occupied this house, and one very famous household furniture item was conceived there (per this story), but the focus is on the multi-generational family that lived there from the end of World War II and into the 21st century.  Hanks is the baby-boomer son of the WWII vet and his wife.  People settle in, struggle with jobs, have kids, celebrate marriages, births, birthdays, holidays, illnesses, and deaths.

This movie has not been received well by the critics.  They say the the stationary camera is a cinematic conceit  of Zemeckis, that the CGI "de-aging" of Hanks and Wright is distracting. I thought the single camera angle was different and I liked it.  We all know that Hanks and Wright aren't twenty-somethings  anymore but let Hollywood magic work it's tricks on them.  I found this movie the be warm and human, well acted (I mean, this IS Tom Hanks, amiright?), and it delivers a wonderful message.  That is is not bricks and mortar that should define a house and home.  It is the memories it creates, both good and not so good, and the people with whom we share them is what is important. Corny?  Maybe, but we liked it.

The movie hit both Linda and I in a very visceral and emotional way.  In Linda's case, her daughter and her husband are now living in the same house where Linda and her Mom, Dad, brother, and sister lived.  They moved into the house in 1961. She sees the emotions and memories are what makes this particular room special, even though the room may look very different than it did a generation ago.  In my case, all the memories that can spring up within you when someone special to you dies.  It packed quite a punch for both of us.

Like I say, professional critics haven't loved "Here", and that is too bad in that it will probably keep people away from it, but these two regular movie goers did, and I look forward to watching it again when it hits the streamers. 

Four Stars from The Grandstander.

To Absent Friends - Elwood Edwards

Elwood Edwards died this week, one day before his 75th birthday, and if you don't know who Elwood Edwards is/was, well, all I can say is that THIS is why I do "Absent Friends" pieces.

Edwards was a camera technician and graphic designer at television station WKYC in Cleveland whose wife was working for a then small internet company.  Back in 1989 she suggested that her firm use the voice of her husband to make a recording that would welcome users to this new online platform.  Edwards then recorded four short phrases:  "Welcome", "Files Done", "Good-bye", and the most ubiquitous and most famous one of all, "You've Got Mail".   Hey, let him tell you about it in this YouTube video.

Who didn't make their first stab at going on the internet and using a personal email account with America Online?  Even if you didn't, you most certainly have heard that unmistakable voice saying "You've got mail."  I always thought that it was some computer generated voice.  It never occurred to me that it was a real person that actually said those words.  Edwards' famous words were even made into a terrific Nora Ephron romantic comedy with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.  Edwards also appeared on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon uttering those famous phrases.

AOL paid Edwards $200 for making the recording.  Too bad he didn't think to ask for residuals.

RIP Elwood Edwards.

To Absent Friends - Quincy Jones

 

Quincy Jones

1933-2024

Yes, it crossed my mind right away that I would be doing an Absent Friends post on Quincy Jones when I heard of his death at the age of 91 two days ago.  Just what would I have to say about Jones, I wondered, and then I read THIS COLUMN by  Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson.   I urge you to click on the link and read it, because, unlike The Grandstander, Gene Robinson is an actual professional columnist, and nothing that I could write about Mr. Jones could eclipse what was written in this column.

But let me say a few things anyway.

You know I love movies.  How about this partial list of movies that Quincy Jones scored:

• In Cold Blood
• In The Heat of the Night
• The Wiz 
• Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
• The Anderson Tapes

And those are just movies that I happen to like.  There are dozens more. When scoring The Wiz in 1978, he got to know a very young Michael Jackson, and that led to a collaboration when Jones produced these albums for Jackson - Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad.  How is that for a Hall of Fame Ballot?

A few weeks ago in THIS SPACE I wrote about watching the documentary "The Greatest Night in Pop" which was about the recording of the song We Are The World in 1985.  Quincy Jones was the driving force behind that recording, and he was the only person who had the ability to make it happen.  From that Gene Robinson column linked above:

Only Jones, the sun in his own musical solar system, could have convened the multitude of performers who assembled in 1985 to record “We Are the World,” an effort to raise funds for African nations suffering famine. What do Michael Jackson, Bob Dylan, Diana Ross, Cyndi Lauper, Paul Simon, Dionne Warwick, Lionel Richie, Al Jarreau, Stevie Wonder and Waylon Jennings have in common? They all came to sing, and to take instruction, when Jones asked.

I urge you to go to your Netflix Machine and watch it to gain a fuller appreciation of what a force Quincy Jones was.

RIP Quincy Jones.

Kritic's Korner - A Musical, A Movie, A Book

& Juliet

We took in the second show in the Broadway Pittsburgh Series last night, & Juliet. The show is a reimagining of Shakespeare's "Romeo & Juliet" with the idea that Juliet does not die at the end.  What comes next for her?   The story is told by Shakespeare himself and his wife Anne Hathaway.  He thinks the play is perfect as he has written it.  She thinks that better story can be told with Juliet surviving.  The whole thing is presented in Jukebox Musical fashion using contemporary songs from artists like Katie Perry, Brittney Spears, Pink, The Backstreet Boys, and others.

The show is colorful, loud, and funny, and Linda and I loved it.   The actors playing Shakespeare and Anne have terrific dialog in their interactions and thoughts on this "new" play, and they keep the story moving along .  One of her great lines in the show to him is "Oh, will you just quit quoting yourself."  And there is a line at the end of their final number had me laughing out loud.  I won't write it down here.  You'll need to see the show yourself.

When I get home from seeing these shows I always go through the Playbill and read about the actors we have just seen, and I am always amazed at the talent and the credentials of these performers.  Foremost in this case was Rachel Simone Webb, pictured above, who played Juliet.  She could belt out a song like you wouldn't believe (Katie Perry's "Roar", for example) and is an absolutely terrific dancer.  Teal Wicks, the actress who played Anne, made her Broadway debut playing Elphaba in Wicked, and was an original cast member on B'way of The Cher Show and Finding Neverland.  Cory Mach, who played Shakespeare, appeared earlier this year in Merrily We Roll Along, a show that won a little thing we like to call a Tony Award.

Four Stars from The Grandstander.

Conclave

"Conclave" is the first movie that we have seen thus far that can be classified as an "Oscar bait" movie.  The movie takes place in the present time, and it opens with the death of the Pope in Rome.  We then follow the conclave that takes place thereafter where the College of Cardinals convenes to elect a new Pope.  Those of us educated in Catholic schools know that when a conclave takes place, it is the Holy Spirit that descends upon the voting Cardinals and guides them as they make this momentous choice.  While the movie acknowledges this precept, it also shows us the these same Cardinals are human beings with human ambitions and foibles, and that the Catholic Church is every bit a political body as it is a spiritual one.

The story can be described as a political thriller, and the acting is tremendous, led by Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini.  I expect that this movie will get a slew of Oscar nominations including Picture, Director (Edward Berger), and acting noms for Fiennes for sure, and probably Tucci and Rossellini as well.

Interestingly, when I went on the Google machine getting a picture for this post, I saw a couple of articles with words to the effect of "Catholics, you should not see this movie!"  Which is probably an excellent reason why you actually SHOULD see this movie.

Three and One-Half Stars from The Grandstander.

The Hitchcock Hotel

Alfred Smettle is strange sort of fellow, a devotee of filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock who runs a Hitchcock-themed hotel/B&B in the small college town in Vermont where Alfred went to college.  On the one year anniversary of the opening of his hotel, he invites his five friends from his college Film Club for the weekend at his Hotel, all expenses paid.  The six pals have not been together since they left college sixteen years before.

We learn early on that Alfred is a bit of a weirdo, that something bad happened among the six pals during their senior year, and we are left to wonder (a) what was that "something bad", and (b) if it was so bad, just why in the hell do all five of these people show up for Alfred's little get together?

As you might expect, someone dies in this one.  Was it an accident, or a murder?  

What follows is an Agatha Christie-like "and then there were none" type of story.  Who had motive to do such a thing?  What are each of these people hiding from each other?  And what's with Danny, that weird old lady head housekeeper who is always hanging around?

As a whodunit, the premise here is pretty good, but the author Stephanie Wrobel's exposition of the motivations is revealed way....too....slowly.   The allusions to Hitchcock and his movies that are laced throughout the book are fun, though, and it makes for an interesting plot device.  Example: on the grounds of the Hitchcock Hotel is an aviary that houses fifty crows.  Subtle, huh?

Two Stars from The Grandstander.