OK Monday back at my desk after a day off cleaning and doing crap around here. Doing what I love.. Which is a good reason we discuss movies on Mondays.. I love movies!
Another thing I love is to piss people off with my opinions so it’s a perfect world.
I bought a movie to watch over the weekend.. Totally ran out of time.. So we will discuss it next week. It’s called “Grumpy old men” and yes that is what I want to be when I grow up. No really one of my all time fave movies.. Ever.. Nuff said.. I never look at ice fishing or Minnesota the same again after a viewing of this film.
I ran over to the local theater to find it had closed. I was just there 3 weeks ago seeing “the Lorax”.. I am confused. Where did it go.. Well it’s still there just not showing movies. WOW.
I look at the local art theater in Michigan to see if I could see a film out there.. It’s in the next time zone and I had just missed a showing of some Keira Knightly film that looked like crap. And “the Descendants” was playing after that and I’m just not following that buzz.
So I came up with a great idea in my head..
If I don’t get out to the movies I can still talk about them right?
So let’s look at the next closest theater. I was actually hoping to find the new Roman Polanksi still playing at the art theater.. Nah it’s gone already.. Rodney said it was too long.. At 73 minutes that might be saying something about the film.. Plus he said it’s very claustrophobic taking place in one room the whole time. Yea 73 minutes at a dinner table with Kate Winslet might kill me…
Ok first up…
“ 21 Jump Street”
File this one under WTF? Jonas fatkidwhatshisname needs another vehicle franchise to ruin I guess. No way no how. I watched this show religiously when I was younger.. With Tammy.. We had our crushes.. And neither of us crushed on Johnny Depp.. Though he was a hottie.. For me it was Peter Deluise and Tammy ,Richard Grieco and Holly Robinson.. she wasn’t Pete back then.
Redoing old TV shows is a vapid boring concept that grates on my nerves. I am sooo not into it.. Ruining my childhood memories for money. I could give a flying rat’s ass if the movie is any good.
Now I did come up with a concept for “Streets of San Francisco” …Ben Affleck and Tommy Lee Jones bring back the highlight of my childhood. That might be worth watching.. As long as they don’t film it in Vancouver.
Here’s the plot. Darlene Stone(played by Elizabeth Banks) Joins a religious cult. Run by ex-con Kevin Spacey. With the help of a local stripper that Keller is banging (played by Tara Reed) they set to bring him down.. But not before Darlene attemps suicide with a few of the cult members.
Now of course this plays on a famous SF story in itself.
people’s temple Which still operates in SF off off Harrison and 11th.

OK on to the next film
“A thousand Words”
No clue what it is even about but it star Eddie Murphy …yeah… ummm… noooo.. not even on Redbox.
“Act Of Valor” “This Means War””Project x” “Ghost Rider” and some movie with the Rock..
One of them has Nic Cage.. one has real soldiers, one has Reese Witherspoon, and I have no clue what the other is but I don’t have care to look it up. And NO..
“Silent House” I’m Claustrophobic and afraid of the dark.. But I still might wanna see this anyway.. Looks creepy and fun.. But wasn’t sure I wanted to see it alone. In the dark with strangers.
“John Carter” I loved the book.. The star looks hot.. But Redbox will have it soon enough.
And finally
“The Hunger Games”
Maia wants to see this.
NOT ME
Here is my rant.. We live in a desensitized society as it is. This film is based on books.. Yes I did start to read the first one and was disgusted by the premise. In the future in your district for a reality TV show you have to give one of your teenage child to this show to fight for the death so your family can survive.
Out of 24 kids age 13-17 one will survive.. If you have a kid in this age group I pity anyone that thinks this is ok. I am not sending Maia out anywhere to compete in a reality show where they kill each other.
It did lead to a few discussions about George Orwell and Aldous Huxley. But my mind is made up.. in this day and age this is no different than letting your kid watch Wolf Creek and Hostel..Yes with reality shows being the big thing I can totally see this happening in our future and with films like this desensitizing people they will think it’s ok.
Years ago they started to show dead bodies on the news. After a childhood of it being the one untalkedabout journalism law.. Just don’t show the carnage., well now in this day and age the carnage is everywhere.
Back to Jim Jones.. When I was a kid Time Magazine put out a cover with dead bodies.. All the suicides from the cult. Stores refused to place that where kids could see it.. I was 11. I saw it when it came in the mail. I think my parents stopped reading Time after that.
When we show kids today that violence is a necessary means to survival we do end up with more teens popping people because death is just a part of life. It doesn’t MEAN ANYTHING.
I am so against this film and book series that Maia is not even allowed to bring it up around me.
Reality TV is ruining our children.
One of Maia’s friends at school lost her little 12 year old sister to suicide on Saturday night.. Maia said it was that she was being bullied in school.. And this is fucking acceptable.. What the fucking fuck…????
My friend Brad is a substitute teacher at the middle school this child went to. She was a bright honors student. Played in the band and sang with the choir. My heart goes out to her family.
Desensitize the kids..
It’s good for them right?

So there ya have it… Oh we got movies we got movies left and right …
UGH
So before I went to bed I put in a DVD..”My Neighbor Totoro” It took me ten minutes to realize I was watching it in Japanese.
I know the movie by heart.
I first saw the movie at the art theater in SF before I was married or even had kids. I rented it when I was Pregnant with Maia and bought it on Laserdisc when she was a baby.
It’s set in a time of innocence when kids run free and play with the king of the forest. Dads are busy all day because mom is suffering in a hospital in a far away town.
But the kids have neighbors and no one is worried till one goes missing.. But even then it’s so pure you can’t help but feel it.
In the book there is just one small child.. Satsuki. In the movie there is a younger sibling and Satsuki is aged. It takes place in a small village in Japan shortly after Hiroshima. The kids and their scientist father who works for the university move into a decrepit old house near the rice patties.. Nanny the neighbor and her boy Cantu help out so dad can work.. His wife is sick and maybe will get to come home someday but the kids are without a care. They are carefree and loved.
One day while dad is working from home Mei the charming and precocious 3 year old follows a Totoro (a forest ghost) into the smaller trees under the big camphor. She encounters the biggest Totoro and he takes on watching over her for the rest of the film.
The film has magic undisplayed in many films of today.and even though it was made in 1988 it set forth a standard in Japanese animation that bonds to your heart no matter when you first see it.
Hiyazaki has gone on to make many more brilliant feel good films for the grownups to enjoy with their children and grownups without children who just want to feel good. “Princess Mononoke”, ”Spirited Away”, “Ponyo” and a favorite here “Kiki’s delivery Service”.. Along with many others.
I challenge each and every one of you to watch this film and not feel good.
There ya go.. A review for a movie I only watched ten minutes of in Japanese:)

Now in closing…. 44 years ago today my adoption was finalized and my brother was no longer and only child. He likes to think he adopted me..So they wish me a happy paper signing day every year.
I even thought of watching a movie with an adopted character this weekend..
On Lifetime TV the adopted character always returns as a sociopath determined to wreak havoc on those who gave him or her away.
In some movies the aunt or uncle adopted the kid only to have them work as slave labor or treat them badly.
Which brings me to the Muppets.
Acceptance in non blood families is the key to Muppet success.. I’m pretty sure Walter was adopted. And Gonzo is from outerspace and treated like family from everyone. Even gives up going home finally to be with his “adopted” family.
I am Gonzo..

Don’t forget to send your questions to me for tomorrows blog!

this one especially makes me happy.. i almost cried when i saw Totoro in Toy Story 3

This guy explains Totoro better than i ever could.

and ending today with what is probably sorta my theme song..
as much as “Rainbow Connection” is my fave song, this is my second fave for the reason you know you belong somewhere.

This looks familiar, vaguely familiar,
Almost unreal, yet, it’s too soon to feel yet.
Close to my soul, and yet so far away.
I’m going to go back there someday.

There’s not a word yet for old friends who’ve just met.
Part heaven, part space, or have I found my place?
You can just visit, but I plan to stay.
I’m going to go back there someday.
I’m going to go back there someday