Okay, world, Sue Heck (Eden Sher) is single and ready to mingle. She's on the prowl. this can only be bad news. She feels that the thought of having Logan as her imaginary boyfriend was really holding her back, so now, she's putting herself out there. However, Sue doesn't make a great first impression, in fact, she even chokes while talking to one guy and he literally has to himelick to get the stuck pretzel out of her mouth. She is so desperate that she takes flirting advice from Frankie (Patricia Heaton) which is just the most awkward thing ever and Sue can't truly follow the advice, forgetting how to walk properly. She does go to another party but it still doesn't go well as she tries to act mysterious and the guy isn't biting. He says that he will say what he's thinking, going to stand over there. She decides to leave the party and insists that Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) stay as she is actually getting along well with a guy. Grateful to leave the party, Sue takes the campus safe ride home and finally lets go of the useless flirting and has a Sue-normal conversation with the driver. I knew that they were going to hit it off, but I don't really see him as a love interest for her, but who knows. He (Keaton Savage) isn't even named and I don't even know if I have the right actor because the credits name him while a name is never mentioned for him. But at least Sue was normal and that was pleasant to see.
Brick (Atticus Shaffer) just came home from a Bar Mitzvah and now wonders when he will become a man. Mike (Neil Flynn) declares that it was probably when he was sixteen and his mother died; he grew up fast. In addition for Brick to do some chores, Mike also says that in some cases, a boy becomes a man when he can take out the trash and put the box back on the trash can by himself. Unfortunately for Brick, that doesn't happen so Brick heads off to the quarry. The guys have interesting things to say and then, giving into peer pressure, Mike takes Brick in the truck and even lets him pull the lever to release the rocks but Brick pulls the lever far too soon, dumping the rocks right in front of the office) trailer. Mike is pretty pissed but later does lighten up, blaming himself. He should have stuck to his guns and never let Brick ride with him in the first place. Brick also apologizes as he should have asked when to pull the lever. He believes that this was very adult of him. Mike even gives him a plaid shirt and teaches him how to flip burgers on the grill which he can actually do. It's a miracle and Brick is a step closer to becoming a man.
Axl (Charlie McDermott) is finally out of his parent's house. He and Hutch (Alphonso McAuley) go in together on a mobile home and are gleeful with delight at the possibilities it has. They drive around campus, leeching off other's free wifi and then Kenny (Tommy Bechtold) finds them. Despite not telling him, Kenny has found them anyway and they aren't thrilled but since they have to drive around so much as they don't have license to park anywhere, they manage to lose Kenny. They are worried and brainstorm ways to find him, but they don't have his contact information, don't know his last name and haven't a clue of what his major even is.
After putting signs around to find him, they realize that they can just find him online. Returning to the Heck house to, once again, take advantage of free wifi, they find Kenny. He's been staying at the Hecks and Frankie was actually pleased to have him, which is surprising but whatever. All is right in the world.
Though this episode was a little jumpy, it was nice finally seeing Mike and Brick having some man time together. Axl's plot line was pretty good, I just thought Sue's was stupid and she is just so clueless sometimes it hurts. Sure, I love her as a character and adore her optimism, but sometimes, she's just too weird, it's ridiculous. But at least she tries, at least she tries, in vain, to put herself out there.
But there are some funny gags and great lines in the episode and the actors have truly perfected their roles after seven seasons. Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Hutch's real name is Charles Hutchinson, who knew?
-I had no idea that Brick would know someone well enough to be invited to a Bar Mitzvah.
-He loves the 'hat' so much that he wants to wear it to church.
-Brick also wants all of his future books to be in the form of a scroll, hopefully not with the funny font.
-Lexie would join the church where Logan is a priest.
-Sue forgets how to walk, that's just awful.
-She also takes it as a sign that the driver is interested in pursuing her but it is really part of his job, making sure that all of his passengers get into their dorm safely.
-Sue always loves a good Meghan Trainor sing-along.
-Frankie has plenty of moves, but she's not wasting them on Mike. That is probably wise.
-Brick does try to put the trash bag back in the trash can, but he fumbles with it and even gets it on his head, a great backroom gag.
-And when he does put the bag back in can it is ripped and he taped it back up with duck tape. Mike isn't pleased.
-Kenny does want to know where Frankie gets her yummy chicken salad. For the record, she gets it at the Frugal Hoosier in the Eat Today section but be sure to do the sniff test first.
-Also, Kenny has some family issues and is grateful for the support he gets from his friends.
-The password to Grandma's Wifi is password.
-Though I love this show, I do wonder where in the world Doris is?
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Monday, February 22, 2016
Steve Jobs (2015)
This was an interesting film. Told in three acts, with a brief, somewhat rushed transition between, this film tells the story of Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) and how he managed to become successful and a billionaire despite being a complete and total jerk. He doesn't give his life-long friend and former business partner, Steve Wozniak (Seth Rogen) any credit for working on the Apple Two Team which gave the original Macintosh computer more than just two outlets. He also denies that he fathered his daughter, Lisa (played at different ages by Mackenzie Moss, Ripley Sobo and Perla Haney-Jardine) despite pleas from his former girlfriend, Chrisann (Katherine Waterston).
Each act takes place before the launch of one of Steve's creations, even though he knew his second creation, Next, would fail epicly and Apple would have no choice but to buy him back.
Beneath the surface, Steve is a deeply troubled man who has big time family issues, as he was given up for adoption and was shuffled between families for a few months. His biological mother didn't want the family to have because they weren't well-educated so his adoptive mother was too scared to love him for several months. That must have done more damage than anyone could have predicted. However, you would think that he would have been nicer to young Lisa because of that.
As the acts move along, Steve's relationship with Lisa becomes better though you don't understand why and you also learn that Chrisann is sort of crazy, spending over a thousand dollars one a house cleansing. Now, while Steve should have provided for his daughter and was completely and utterly horrible to Lisa's mother, Chrisann was taking advantage of his money, plain and simple.
Kate Winslet is Joanna Hoffman, Steve's loyal friend and publicist, who stuck with him through the thick and thin. She gives a great performance as does Jeff Daniels, who looks far younger than his sixty years old. Daniels is John Scully, the former CEO of Apple, who fired Steve Jobs. Each of them have difficult relationships with Steve.
When Winslet won her Golden Globe, she stated that she felt that she couldn't believe the amount of dialogue in this film and she's right, there is a lot of dialogue and each of the actors execute the lines flawlessly. Each act is brilliantly written, and though they somewhat connect, plenty of stuff happens that the film glosses over. How does Steve eventually develop a good relationship with Lisa? And he does eventually marry by the time the final act occurs, but that is never mentioned.
Still, the film is saved by the fantastic dialogue and great performances, though I don't feel either Fassbender or Winslet deserve an Oscar for their roles. Grade: B
Each act takes place before the launch of one of Steve's creations, even though he knew his second creation, Next, would fail epicly and Apple would have no choice but to buy him back.
Beneath the surface, Steve is a deeply troubled man who has big time family issues, as he was given up for adoption and was shuffled between families for a few months. His biological mother didn't want the family to have because they weren't well-educated so his adoptive mother was too scared to love him for several months. That must have done more damage than anyone could have predicted. However, you would think that he would have been nicer to young Lisa because of that.
As the acts move along, Steve's relationship with Lisa becomes better though you don't understand why and you also learn that Chrisann is sort of crazy, spending over a thousand dollars one a house cleansing. Now, while Steve should have provided for his daughter and was completely and utterly horrible to Lisa's mother, Chrisann was taking advantage of his money, plain and simple.
Kate Winslet is Joanna Hoffman, Steve's loyal friend and publicist, who stuck with him through the thick and thin. She gives a great performance as does Jeff Daniels, who looks far younger than his sixty years old. Daniels is John Scully, the former CEO of Apple, who fired Steve Jobs. Each of them have difficult relationships with Steve.
When Winslet won her Golden Globe, she stated that she felt that she couldn't believe the amount of dialogue in this film and she's right, there is a lot of dialogue and each of the actors execute the lines flawlessly. Each act is brilliantly written, and though they somewhat connect, plenty of stuff happens that the film glosses over. How does Steve eventually develop a good relationship with Lisa? And he does eventually marry by the time the final act occurs, but that is never mentioned.
Still, the film is saved by the fantastic dialogue and great performances, though I don't feel either Fassbender or Winslet deserve an Oscar for their roles. Grade: B
Friday, February 19, 2016
Race
It wasn't until I was in college that I learned how close Jesse Owens was to not even attending the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Considering how prejudice and cruel the Nazis were, and how many issues America was having at home, it would have been understandable if they boycotted the Olympics but there was not to be another one until 1948, though they didn't know that at the time. But I'm glad they competed anyway, even though the U.S. wouldn't recognize his wins until long after his 1980 death, Jesse Owens was a true champion, but not a saint as the film would portray.
The film begins in 1933, right before Jesse Owens (Stephan James) is set to be the first in his large, but poor family in Cleveland, Ohio. Though Jesse was born with a talent for running, he has more immediate concerns, his girlfriend, Ruth (Shanice Banton) and their young daughter.
The Ohio State University's head track coach, Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis) is desperate and hungry for his next young track star and fortunately, has no prejudice unlike the nasty football coach who only lets whites play on his team, so he latches on to Jesse Owen's especially when he hears of Jesse's good work effort. Poor Jesse was picking pounds of cotton per day as a six-year-old. Though Snyder is a great coach, he doesn't understand the struggles of being an African American in a racist and segregated country nor the struggles of a penniless father who needs to provide for his daughter. Fortunately, he gets Jesse a better job so Jesse can focus on the track and he is great, setting records, despite suffering an injury just days before a national competition. Everything is fine until an attractive girl won't take no for an answer and Ruth gets furious that he loses his focus. And he loses it big time, he is over a second behind his world-record pace and is determined to win Ruth back. Which he does, in the closest thing this film has to a comedic scene, though it is also creepy how he cases her beauty salon where she works until it closes just so he can walk her home, which was how they had met before he nearly became famous. Fortunately for Jesse, Ruth does say that she will marry him even though no respectable pastor will marry them. And now, he can focus on his athletics again.
All this time, there is a debate brewing at the American Olympic Committee on whether or not Americans should even compete in the Olympics. A former competitor and now architect Avery Bundage (Jeremy Irons) is sent over to figure out and see for himself on how racist and prejudice the country of Germany actually is. Over there, he meets the famed director and confidante of Hitler himself, Leni Riefenstahl (Carice von Houten) and Hitler's right hand man, the creepy and eerie looking Goebbels (Barnaby Metschurat). Needless to say, Bundage isn't thrilled with how the country treats minorities so he and Goebbels form an unacceptable arrangement, Germany will loosen up the restrictions on the Jews and Bundage will help design an embassy in Washington D.C. which threatens to overwhelm the White House. This is agreed to and in a narrow vote, the American Olympic Committee decides that they will allow Americans to compete at the games. It is truly a narrow vote, with only two more people deciding to compete than those who want to boycott. But some don't want Jesse to compete, how can America support a country when their own has so many problems to deal with? Jesse decides that he won't participate but at Snyder's insistence, he tells him that he should at least compete in the Olympic trials so he can at least have the choice. Even another African American Athlete, Peacock (Shamier Anderson), who is now injured, tells Jesse that he would attend. Jesse struggles with the decision until the very last minute, especially since his coach won't be allowed to travel with the team, but fortunately for us, he decides to go and Larry also goes, on his own dime.
Here, Jesse wins three gold medals and forms a friendship in the most unlikely place, with a fellow long-jump competitor, Carl 'Luz' Long (The Reader's David Kross). He gives Jesse good advice which is desperately needed as Jesse nearly fouls out, and would have been unable to compete in the end. However, Jesse unexpectedly competes in a fourth event because Goebbels refuses to allow the Jewish American athletes to compete in that event. Jesse is furious but does compete and help win, after his teammates give him their blessing. This angers Goebbels, but Jesse is very much loved. Leni is thrilled and believes that he will make her film. Having never seen the final film, I have no idea if any of the footage of Owens was allowed to be used in the final film, a documentary of Nazi propaganda, just as she was hired to do.
While you do know basically how the film ends, it is interesting to see everything before characters get there, but there are some problems. The film has many minor plot lines shuffled into the main plot of Jesse's success, including his romance with Ruth and the close relationship he eventually forms with his coach, in addition to the battle the American Olympic Committee faces as well as Leni's fight for her film to be a success. Leni believed that her film was the only reason the Olympics would be remembered, but she was wrong. I knew of Owens long before I had ever heard of Riefenstahl and my mom had never heard of her. Now, there was also a slight historical inaccuracy, Bundage tells Goebbels that Hitler will either congratulate either all the winners or none at all. Though this event did happen, it wasn't after Owens won, it was after a Jewish European won an event. Hitler would eventually shake Owen's hand.
Though both James and Sudakis give excellent performances, something more should have been made when Sudeikis is confronted by the Nazis and can see the Jews being rounded up in an area most certainly off-limits to the tourist Americans. Though the event troubled him, he doesn't express it to Owens, who certainly had to deal with that every day, he was booed often at his races and by his fellow athletes, mostly the football players. In fact, after he wins the medals, at a special dinner in his honor, he is forced to enter in the back as he is African American. Though he is certainly pissed off, he calmly agrees while Snyder is royally pissed and livid at the whole thing. Something more should have been done with that troubling event.
Another interesting tidbit is Jesse's friendship with Long, who is glad that he won and is also disappointed at the direction his beloved country is headed. Long even tells Jesse that a girl was sent up to his room the night before the race with the sole purpose of getting pregnant. I don't know if that story was actually true, but if it is, that is just sick.
Though the plot had vignettes in other directions, I was able to follow everything well, thanks in part to that paper I wrote in college specifically about the Berlin Olympics, and I liked how the film covered several different viewpoints. I liked the performances, with no false notes to be found and how friendships can be important to one man's success. Sudeikis nails his first dramatic performance and James should have a long, successful career ahead of him. The film was also great visually, with no historical inaccuracies that I could find. And I liked how they hid the dates and places in the settings of the film. I would gladly see this film again. Grade: B+
The film begins in 1933, right before Jesse Owens (Stephan James) is set to be the first in his large, but poor family in Cleveland, Ohio. Though Jesse was born with a talent for running, he has more immediate concerns, his girlfriend, Ruth (Shanice Banton) and their young daughter.
The Ohio State University's head track coach, Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis) is desperate and hungry for his next young track star and fortunately, has no prejudice unlike the nasty football coach who only lets whites play on his team, so he latches on to Jesse Owen's especially when he hears of Jesse's good work effort. Poor Jesse was picking pounds of cotton per day as a six-year-old. Though Snyder is a great coach, he doesn't understand the struggles of being an African American in a racist and segregated country nor the struggles of a penniless father who needs to provide for his daughter. Fortunately, he gets Jesse a better job so Jesse can focus on the track and he is great, setting records, despite suffering an injury just days before a national competition. Everything is fine until an attractive girl won't take no for an answer and Ruth gets furious that he loses his focus. And he loses it big time, he is over a second behind his world-record pace and is determined to win Ruth back. Which he does, in the closest thing this film has to a comedic scene, though it is also creepy how he cases her beauty salon where she works until it closes just so he can walk her home, which was how they had met before he nearly became famous. Fortunately for Jesse, Ruth does say that she will marry him even though no respectable pastor will marry them. And now, he can focus on his athletics again.
All this time, there is a debate brewing at the American Olympic Committee on whether or not Americans should even compete in the Olympics. A former competitor and now architect Avery Bundage (Jeremy Irons) is sent over to figure out and see for himself on how racist and prejudice the country of Germany actually is. Over there, he meets the famed director and confidante of Hitler himself, Leni Riefenstahl (Carice von Houten) and Hitler's right hand man, the creepy and eerie looking Goebbels (Barnaby Metschurat). Needless to say, Bundage isn't thrilled with how the country treats minorities so he and Goebbels form an unacceptable arrangement, Germany will loosen up the restrictions on the Jews and Bundage will help design an embassy in Washington D.C. which threatens to overwhelm the White House. This is agreed to and in a narrow vote, the American Olympic Committee decides that they will allow Americans to compete at the games. It is truly a narrow vote, with only two more people deciding to compete than those who want to boycott. But some don't want Jesse to compete, how can America support a country when their own has so many problems to deal with? Jesse decides that he won't participate but at Snyder's insistence, he tells him that he should at least compete in the Olympic trials so he can at least have the choice. Even another African American Athlete, Peacock (Shamier Anderson), who is now injured, tells Jesse that he would attend. Jesse struggles with the decision until the very last minute, especially since his coach won't be allowed to travel with the team, but fortunately for us, he decides to go and Larry also goes, on his own dime.
Here, Jesse wins three gold medals and forms a friendship in the most unlikely place, with a fellow long-jump competitor, Carl 'Luz' Long (The Reader's David Kross). He gives Jesse good advice which is desperately needed as Jesse nearly fouls out, and would have been unable to compete in the end. However, Jesse unexpectedly competes in a fourth event because Goebbels refuses to allow the Jewish American athletes to compete in that event. Jesse is furious but does compete and help win, after his teammates give him their blessing. This angers Goebbels, but Jesse is very much loved. Leni is thrilled and believes that he will make her film. Having never seen the final film, I have no idea if any of the footage of Owens was allowed to be used in the final film, a documentary of Nazi propaganda, just as she was hired to do.
While you do know basically how the film ends, it is interesting to see everything before characters get there, but there are some problems. The film has many minor plot lines shuffled into the main plot of Jesse's success, including his romance with Ruth and the close relationship he eventually forms with his coach, in addition to the battle the American Olympic Committee faces as well as Leni's fight for her film to be a success. Leni believed that her film was the only reason the Olympics would be remembered, but she was wrong. I knew of Owens long before I had ever heard of Riefenstahl and my mom had never heard of her. Now, there was also a slight historical inaccuracy, Bundage tells Goebbels that Hitler will either congratulate either all the winners or none at all. Though this event did happen, it wasn't after Owens won, it was after a Jewish European won an event. Hitler would eventually shake Owen's hand.
Though both James and Sudakis give excellent performances, something more should have been made when Sudeikis is confronted by the Nazis and can see the Jews being rounded up in an area most certainly off-limits to the tourist Americans. Though the event troubled him, he doesn't express it to Owens, who certainly had to deal with that every day, he was booed often at his races and by his fellow athletes, mostly the football players. In fact, after he wins the medals, at a special dinner in his honor, he is forced to enter in the back as he is African American. Though he is certainly pissed off, he calmly agrees while Snyder is royally pissed and livid at the whole thing. Something more should have been done with that troubling event.
Another interesting tidbit is Jesse's friendship with Long, who is glad that he won and is also disappointed at the direction his beloved country is headed. Long even tells Jesse that a girl was sent up to his room the night before the race with the sole purpose of getting pregnant. I don't know if that story was actually true, but if it is, that is just sick.
Though the plot had vignettes in other directions, I was able to follow everything well, thanks in part to that paper I wrote in college specifically about the Berlin Olympics, and I liked how the film covered several different viewpoints. I liked the performances, with no false notes to be found and how friendships can be important to one man's success. Sudeikis nails his first dramatic performance and James should have a long, successful career ahead of him. The film was also great visually, with no historical inaccuracies that I could find. And I liked how they hid the dates and places in the settings of the film. I would gladly see this film again. Grade: B+
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
The Middle: Hecks at a Movie
Well, poor Brick (Atticus Shaffer) has never been to the movies. Yes, I can believe it though Frankie (Patricia Heaton) and Mike (Neil Flynn) cannot. They may not go to the movies often, but they certainly know how to sneak food in. Brick has Milk Dudes (the generic, probably gross version of Milk Duds) in his sleeve and some other snack down his pants while Mike brings a whole two-liter soda bottle in his coat pocket.
The Hecks are going to see a film which had a passing shot of a local diner and at the theater, they meet the Donohues and Norwoods and Bill (Pat Finn) tells everyone a funny story about when he met an actual celebrity but Frankie keeps interrupting and turning the story back on her though his is much more interesting. Mike gets annoyed and quietly and quickly shushes her in front of the others which sort of sucked the life out of the story. Frankie is livid and even after Mike attempts a weak apology solely so the fight doesn't move to a second location and tries, in vain, to grab her hand, she shakes it off and even slaps his hand away but Mike is persistent, especially for Mike. Frankie is massively insulted. But she was talking a lot.
Sue (Eden Sher) does provide some potatoes but they need butter and though she feels guilty because they bought nothing from the concession stand, she goes to get butter anyway and runs into Logan (David Hull). Fortunately, fate smiles on her as Logan isn't mad at her for leaving him inside the library. They seem to be getting along splendidly, as they have many of the same interests and the flirting is heavy, Logan even offers Sue his jacket because she left hers in the movie theater, something she completely forgot about as she is more interested in him. They have a wonderful kiss, albeit brief, before Logan drops a bomb. He is thinking of switching his major--to religious studies. Yes, that's right, he's seriously considering becoming a priest. (Remember guys, he went to Catholic school.) Sue is devastated and angry at God, though she immediately apologizes for the harsh feelings. Yes, fate has dealt her a curve ball.
Brick also misses the movie but for an entirely different reason. Before the movie even begins, a trailer for his beloved books, Planet Nowhere airs and he is livid at the casting and how they are portraying everything, so different from the books, which angers him. Brick is determined that that film never see the light of day, but his plight goes nowhere. The theater will still show it because that's there job and Mike insists he return the poster cut-out because that's stealing but I doubt will will let his fight go that easily though he will eventually give up because that is his pattern.
Despite Mike's best efforts, the fight continues to the home but everything stops as Frankie goes to email Nancy (Jen Ray) to stop the bleeding and she sees that the pictures believed to be lost forever at Christmastime have magically reappeared. Delight fills the room and Sue believes that this is her reward for letting God have Logan, though, just like Brick, I don't think she will give up that easily. And I really like them together so I hope things work out.
Needless to say, this episode was funny, especially when Mike really, truly tried to hold Frankie's hand, though the funniest part is something that I will talk about down below. Sue is so awkward when she tries to flirt, yet, she's such a great character but she has been lucky, sheltered from much of this cruel, dark world. And all is right in the Heck marriage again, there is much to be thankful for. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Axl's (Charlie McDermott's) tiny little plot is truly hilarious. During the film, he and Sean (Beau Wirick) decide if a couple in front of them is going to kiss and they recount their first kiss, at Susie Baker's house, in a dark closet and it was interrupted when her dad came down to break up the party and each hit their respective heads on the door. Yes, that's right, they kissed each other. Embarrassment ensues. And Axl does try to justify everything by saying that since then, he has kissed thirty-eight girls and none of them have ever complained.
-Sean, for the record, is still in the single digits, but his grades are much better.
-Sean is also still not eating meat and his mother is ashamed.
-For the first time, Sue doesn't barf when she believes that she is stealing from the theater.
-The celebrity that Bill who wanted five lemons in her water is, just as Frankie predicted, Heather Locklear.
-Brick gets up at yells at the screen during the trailer but Mike tells him that he can't do that because this isn't the TV.
-When Sue finds out that Logan is switching his major, she hopes that it won't be to psychology because that is what she is leaning toward and if they both have the same job, that could really mess the kids up. Way to push that relationship forward. Way to be subtle.
-Sue kept Logan's coat on purpose just so she would have an excuse to see him again. It was a good excuse to see him again.
-She does say that he will make a good priest because he gives great advice. They weren't thinking when they kissed, they were just feeling.
-Frankie tells Mike that they can fight in private but never in public because they need to create the illusion of a happy marriage.
-I wonder where the Donohue and Norwood children are? The only one shown is Sean.
-Why are lemons in water so fancy? It's just weird, there's nothing wrong with plain water.
The Hecks are going to see a film which had a passing shot of a local diner and at the theater, they meet the Donohues and Norwoods and Bill (Pat Finn) tells everyone a funny story about when he met an actual celebrity but Frankie keeps interrupting and turning the story back on her though his is much more interesting. Mike gets annoyed and quietly and quickly shushes her in front of the others which sort of sucked the life out of the story. Frankie is livid and even after Mike attempts a weak apology solely so the fight doesn't move to a second location and tries, in vain, to grab her hand, she shakes it off and even slaps his hand away but Mike is persistent, especially for Mike. Frankie is massively insulted. But she was talking a lot.
Sue (Eden Sher) does provide some potatoes but they need butter and though she feels guilty because they bought nothing from the concession stand, she goes to get butter anyway and runs into Logan (David Hull). Fortunately, fate smiles on her as Logan isn't mad at her for leaving him inside the library. They seem to be getting along splendidly, as they have many of the same interests and the flirting is heavy, Logan even offers Sue his jacket because she left hers in the movie theater, something she completely forgot about as she is more interested in him. They have a wonderful kiss, albeit brief, before Logan drops a bomb. He is thinking of switching his major--to religious studies. Yes, that's right, he's seriously considering becoming a priest. (Remember guys, he went to Catholic school.) Sue is devastated and angry at God, though she immediately apologizes for the harsh feelings. Yes, fate has dealt her a curve ball.
Brick also misses the movie but for an entirely different reason. Before the movie even begins, a trailer for his beloved books, Planet Nowhere airs and he is livid at the casting and how they are portraying everything, so different from the books, which angers him. Brick is determined that that film never see the light of day, but his plight goes nowhere. The theater will still show it because that's there job and Mike insists he return the poster cut-out because that's stealing but I doubt will will let his fight go that easily though he will eventually give up because that is his pattern.
Despite Mike's best efforts, the fight continues to the home but everything stops as Frankie goes to email Nancy (Jen Ray) to stop the bleeding and she sees that the pictures believed to be lost forever at Christmastime have magically reappeared. Delight fills the room and Sue believes that this is her reward for letting God have Logan, though, just like Brick, I don't think she will give up that easily. And I really like them together so I hope things work out.
Needless to say, this episode was funny, especially when Mike really, truly tried to hold Frankie's hand, though the funniest part is something that I will talk about down below. Sue is so awkward when she tries to flirt, yet, she's such a great character but she has been lucky, sheltered from much of this cruel, dark world. And all is right in the Heck marriage again, there is much to be thankful for. Grade: A-
Side Notes:
-Axl's (Charlie McDermott's) tiny little plot is truly hilarious. During the film, he and Sean (Beau Wirick) decide if a couple in front of them is going to kiss and they recount their first kiss, at Susie Baker's house, in a dark closet and it was interrupted when her dad came down to break up the party and each hit their respective heads on the door. Yes, that's right, they kissed each other. Embarrassment ensues. And Axl does try to justify everything by saying that since then, he has kissed thirty-eight girls and none of them have ever complained.
-Sean, for the record, is still in the single digits, but his grades are much better.
-Sean is also still not eating meat and his mother is ashamed.
-For the first time, Sue doesn't barf when she believes that she is stealing from the theater.
-The celebrity that Bill who wanted five lemons in her water is, just as Frankie predicted, Heather Locklear.
-Brick gets up at yells at the screen during the trailer but Mike tells him that he can't do that because this isn't the TV.
-When Sue finds out that Logan is switching his major, she hopes that it won't be to psychology because that is what she is leaning toward and if they both have the same job, that could really mess the kids up. Way to push that relationship forward. Way to be subtle.
-Sue kept Logan's coat on purpose just so she would have an excuse to see him again. It was a good excuse to see him again.
-She does say that he will make a good priest because he gives great advice. They weren't thinking when they kissed, they were just feeling.
-Frankie tells Mike that they can fight in private but never in public because they need to create the illusion of a happy marriage.
-I wonder where the Donohue and Norwood children are? The only one shown is Sean.
-Why are lemons in water so fancy? It's just weird, there's nothing wrong with plain water.
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
The Middle: Film, Friends and Fruit Pies
First of all, writers of The Middle, I am very disappointed that this year does not feature a Valentine's Day episode. The Middle has always done the holidays right, so I feel like I was denied something wonderful.
This was far from a Valentine's Day episode.
Sue (Eden Sher) is thrilled that she finally has the roommate of her dreams: her brand new bestie, Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) but that quickly turns to smoke as she immediately buys a huge, albeit cheap TV and assumes that Sue will just pay for half of it. Sure, it is only one hundred and fifty dollars but to Sue, that is a huge amount of money. Yet, instead of telling Lexie that she is on a super tight budget, she coughs up the dough and donates plasma. Which she realizes is important only after donating tons of it to pay for everything extravagant that Lexie buys. Her parents insist that she tell Lexie the truth, but confrontation isn't Sue's strong suit. Only when Lexie foolishly throws out Sue's almost empty bottle of shampoo does Sue take action, declaring that she is poor. Lexie takes the news pretty well and insists on paying for everything though Sue won't let her. Fortunately, despite Lexie having the money for VIP tickets to see Taylor Swift they go outside the concert and strain to hear the remnants of her songs but they nevertheless have a great time.
Axl's (Charlie McDermott's) boss, Jack (Alan Ruck) finally takes a shine to him but it is only because Jack is stressing out as the company is going bankrupt, hemorrhaging money like crazy as the company just inherited a bunch of rotten apples. Axl tries to brush the revelation, no one his age eats fruit pies anyway. Jack takes this advice to heart and fires fifty people, the entire fruit pie division, thinking nothing of it. He will gladly listen to any advice Axl has to offer in the future and if Axl keeps his wits about him, then Jack's job could be Axl's which just leaves him with a depressed feeling.
Brick (Atticus Shaffer) doesn't know what it is like to have friends so now that he finally has some, it doesn't go that well. He hires them to work on a school project with both Troy (Jovan Armand) and Cindy (Casey Burke) as the actors and himself as the director but Brick is a tyrant, and insists that they be letter perfect and capture the emotions the professional actors possess. Fortunately, Frankie (Patricia Heaton) tells Brick that he must treat his friends better because he doesn't have many options. He apologizes and they go out to get fries together.
Frankie and Mike (Neil Flynn) don't have much of a plot line but it is one that I can certainly relate to. Frankie steps on this piece of unidentified plastic and wonders what household appliance it belongs to. Then, Frankie finally figures it out. It should go into a slot on the dryer door so they don't need to use a broom to keep the door closed. This is all the Valentine's Day present Frankie needs only to have Mike squash her dreams as he threw the piece out yesterday. Frankie isn't pleased. But oh well, they will survive and things will stay the same for them.
Now, while the plot lines didn't really connect, they were great anyway. Axl's may have been a bit far-fetched with his boss befriending him just to confide in someone, but the greatness of Sue's and Brick's made up for it. That being said, in this strong episode, it could have been more interesting with a Valentine's Day theme. But there will funny moments and great, zany lines with once again solid performances from the core cast as well as the guest stars. Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Brick has to recreate a pivotal film moment and he can't decide between Battleship Potemkin or Knot's Landing which he binged on after Aunt Edie's death. On a beta max. Needless to say, his friends don't share his enthusiasm.
-He even gets his parents to fill-in for the parts after Troy and Cindy bail but Mike isn't feeling the emotions so he immediately gets Brad (J. Brock Ciarlelli), available at the last minute, to propose to Frankie as Frankie is expecting his child. It is awkward but wonderful.
-Cindy's excuse is that she has a head cold and her great-aunt died while Troy has the flu plus his great-uncle passed away. Brick doesn't understand how this could happen, I mean what are the odds? But Frankie tells him that this is not the case, they are lying to him.
-Axl's hair starts falling out and he believes that he is gaining weight as the job is stressing him out, even though he is only there ten hours per week.
-Jack's truck drivers are threatening to strike again, after all, they declare they can't drive for forty-eight hours straight.
-Lexie has three emergency credit cards and insists that she is not rich even though she does also have a horse, but he is really old.
-Frankie used to have a rich friend but she was a sponge though she did learn how to water ski.
-Mike tells his children that they should always friend down and that their plan to get out of debt is that they will die before they have to pay everything off.
-I wonder what happened to Doris?
This was far from a Valentine's Day episode.
Sue (Eden Sher) is thrilled that she finally has the roommate of her dreams: her brand new bestie, Lexie (Daniela Bobadilla) but that quickly turns to smoke as she immediately buys a huge, albeit cheap TV and assumes that Sue will just pay for half of it. Sure, it is only one hundred and fifty dollars but to Sue, that is a huge amount of money. Yet, instead of telling Lexie that she is on a super tight budget, she coughs up the dough and donates plasma. Which she realizes is important only after donating tons of it to pay for everything extravagant that Lexie buys. Her parents insist that she tell Lexie the truth, but confrontation isn't Sue's strong suit. Only when Lexie foolishly throws out Sue's almost empty bottle of shampoo does Sue take action, declaring that she is poor. Lexie takes the news pretty well and insists on paying for everything though Sue won't let her. Fortunately, despite Lexie having the money for VIP tickets to see Taylor Swift they go outside the concert and strain to hear the remnants of her songs but they nevertheless have a great time.
Axl's (Charlie McDermott's) boss, Jack (Alan Ruck) finally takes a shine to him but it is only because Jack is stressing out as the company is going bankrupt, hemorrhaging money like crazy as the company just inherited a bunch of rotten apples. Axl tries to brush the revelation, no one his age eats fruit pies anyway. Jack takes this advice to heart and fires fifty people, the entire fruit pie division, thinking nothing of it. He will gladly listen to any advice Axl has to offer in the future and if Axl keeps his wits about him, then Jack's job could be Axl's which just leaves him with a depressed feeling.
Brick (Atticus Shaffer) doesn't know what it is like to have friends so now that he finally has some, it doesn't go that well. He hires them to work on a school project with both Troy (Jovan Armand) and Cindy (Casey Burke) as the actors and himself as the director but Brick is a tyrant, and insists that they be letter perfect and capture the emotions the professional actors possess. Fortunately, Frankie (Patricia Heaton) tells Brick that he must treat his friends better because he doesn't have many options. He apologizes and they go out to get fries together.
Frankie and Mike (Neil Flynn) don't have much of a plot line but it is one that I can certainly relate to. Frankie steps on this piece of unidentified plastic and wonders what household appliance it belongs to. Then, Frankie finally figures it out. It should go into a slot on the dryer door so they don't need to use a broom to keep the door closed. This is all the Valentine's Day present Frankie needs only to have Mike squash her dreams as he threw the piece out yesterday. Frankie isn't pleased. But oh well, they will survive and things will stay the same for them.
Now, while the plot lines didn't really connect, they were great anyway. Axl's may have been a bit far-fetched with his boss befriending him just to confide in someone, but the greatness of Sue's and Brick's made up for it. That being said, in this strong episode, it could have been more interesting with a Valentine's Day theme. But there will funny moments and great, zany lines with once again solid performances from the core cast as well as the guest stars. Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Brick has to recreate a pivotal film moment and he can't decide between Battleship Potemkin or Knot's Landing which he binged on after Aunt Edie's death. On a beta max. Needless to say, his friends don't share his enthusiasm.
-He even gets his parents to fill-in for the parts after Troy and Cindy bail but Mike isn't feeling the emotions so he immediately gets Brad (J. Brock Ciarlelli), available at the last minute, to propose to Frankie as Frankie is expecting his child. It is awkward but wonderful.
-Cindy's excuse is that she has a head cold and her great-aunt died while Troy has the flu plus his great-uncle passed away. Brick doesn't understand how this could happen, I mean what are the odds? But Frankie tells him that this is not the case, they are lying to him.
-Axl's hair starts falling out and he believes that he is gaining weight as the job is stressing him out, even though he is only there ten hours per week.
-Jack's truck drivers are threatening to strike again, after all, they declare they can't drive for forty-eight hours straight.
-Lexie has three emergency credit cards and insists that she is not rich even though she does also have a horse, but he is really old.
-Frankie used to have a rich friend but she was a sponge though she did learn how to water ski.
-Mike tells his children that they should always friend down and that their plan to get out of debt is that they will die before they have to pay everything off.
-I wonder what happened to Doris?
Friday, February 5, 2016
Hail, Caesar!
I have seen several Coen brothers films, with Fargo being a highlight. This film is just, odd.
Josh Brolin is great as the head of a fictional studio, Capitol Studios. He has too many different problems which he must juggle at the same time. The film has the same problem. Brolin's character, Eddie Mannix must bail out a drunken star, and deal with several religious officials on whether the studio's big budget picture is representing the Christ figure properly. And that's just the beginning. The Esther Williams-Lana Turner type star, DeeAnna Moran (Scarlett Johannson) is pregnant and won't marry again because she has had two failed marriages and refuses to marry another smuck. And then, the Western star, Hobey Doyle (Alden Ehrenreich) has just been cast in his first dramatic performance and it is not going well, to the dismay of director Laurence Laurentz (Ralph Fiennes). If that isn't enough, Baird Whitlock (George Clooney), a huge star if he is a drunkard and womanizer, gets kidnapped by two extras, sending his film's production into a tailspin. It can't afford to shut down, not even for a single day so the race to find him is on.
The film turns out differently than I ever expected. Baird is taken to a lovely beach-side home where he is lectured by a group of scholars and former Hollywood screenwriters who have since scorned the industry, never seeing a penny their penned films have made. They are now Communists and are attempting to persuade Baird to join their side, which they do easily as Baird isn't particularly bright. In fact, he even wants a cut of his own ransom. Ironically, the group is lead by Mickey-Rooneyesque star, Bert (Channing Tatum) who loves his dog and willingly goes over to the Russians, never to be seen from again.
While meeting with Mannix, Hobey is informed of the devastating event and informs him to look at the extras, because they can run both ways. This turns out to be solid advice. Later that evening, while out on a set-up studio date with Carlota Valdez (Veronica Osorio), he sees the over-stuffed briefcase with the ransom money and follows the money. For whatever reason, at the beach house, the Communists have left Baird alone so Hobey is simply able to take him and get him to a hotel, too late to go home to his wife.
This leaves Eddie able to tell DeeAnna able the ludicrous plan for her to surrender her baby and then, adopt it back. Jonah Hill is Joseph Silverstein, a cameo of a role, as one of the guys the studio has on budget to take the fall for mistakes that the big stars commit. Fortunately, he turns up the winner. He ends up getting married to DeeAnna, so she fortunately won't have to adopt her own baby.
Baird tries to say to Eddie that Communism is good but Eddie slaps him back into place, saying that the studio made him and he's an actor so he can't badmouth the hand that feeds him. Baird reports back to work and gives a rousing final speech. Life has returned to normal, mostly.
Despite being an interesting, funny film, it just doesn't gel together, with abrupt shifts between the too-many plot lines, and big studio productions, which only please the eye and do nothing really to develop character or move the plot along. Thank goodness the acting is good, with Ehrenreich and Brolin being the stand-outs. This film tries to be a message film but if it is, I don't know completely what the message is. That being said, I did largely enjoy the film and will probably watch it again. Grade: B
Josh Brolin is great as the head of a fictional studio, Capitol Studios. He has too many different problems which he must juggle at the same time. The film has the same problem. Brolin's character, Eddie Mannix must bail out a drunken star, and deal with several religious officials on whether the studio's big budget picture is representing the Christ figure properly. And that's just the beginning. The Esther Williams-Lana Turner type star, DeeAnna Moran (Scarlett Johannson) is pregnant and won't marry again because she has had two failed marriages and refuses to marry another smuck. And then, the Western star, Hobey Doyle (Alden Ehrenreich) has just been cast in his first dramatic performance and it is not going well, to the dismay of director Laurence Laurentz (Ralph Fiennes). If that isn't enough, Baird Whitlock (George Clooney), a huge star if he is a drunkard and womanizer, gets kidnapped by two extras, sending his film's production into a tailspin. It can't afford to shut down, not even for a single day so the race to find him is on.
The film turns out differently than I ever expected. Baird is taken to a lovely beach-side home where he is lectured by a group of scholars and former Hollywood screenwriters who have since scorned the industry, never seeing a penny their penned films have made. They are now Communists and are attempting to persuade Baird to join their side, which they do easily as Baird isn't particularly bright. In fact, he even wants a cut of his own ransom. Ironically, the group is lead by Mickey-Rooneyesque star, Bert (Channing Tatum) who loves his dog and willingly goes over to the Russians, never to be seen from again.
While meeting with Mannix, Hobey is informed of the devastating event and informs him to look at the extras, because they can run both ways. This turns out to be solid advice. Later that evening, while out on a set-up studio date with Carlota Valdez (Veronica Osorio), he sees the over-stuffed briefcase with the ransom money and follows the money. For whatever reason, at the beach house, the Communists have left Baird alone so Hobey is simply able to take him and get him to a hotel, too late to go home to his wife.
This leaves Eddie able to tell DeeAnna able the ludicrous plan for her to surrender her baby and then, adopt it back. Jonah Hill is Joseph Silverstein, a cameo of a role, as one of the guys the studio has on budget to take the fall for mistakes that the big stars commit. Fortunately, he turns up the winner. He ends up getting married to DeeAnna, so she fortunately won't have to adopt her own baby.
Baird tries to say to Eddie that Communism is good but Eddie slaps him back into place, saying that the studio made him and he's an actor so he can't badmouth the hand that feeds him. Baird reports back to work and gives a rousing final speech. Life has returned to normal, mostly.
Despite being an interesting, funny film, it just doesn't gel together, with abrupt shifts between the too-many plot lines, and big studio productions, which only please the eye and do nothing really to develop character or move the plot along. Thank goodness the acting is good, with Ehrenreich and Brolin being the stand-outs. This film tries to be a message film but if it is, I don't know completely what the message is. That being said, I did largely enjoy the film and will probably watch it again. Grade: B
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