A wonderfully thoughtful movie starring and directed by Vera Farmiga (stupendous actress) about a woman's search for a faith and guidelines for living. The religion she becomes part of is a Bible-quoting born-again revivalist rule-bound Christian one. The movie spans the time of her meeting her future husband in school and early marriage and the birth of her children (when the film ended her oldest dtr. looked to be about 15).
Nothing was overdone or dramatized like in a Hollywood blockbuster; everything was believable and the acting was superb with great music. It was not a judgmental opinionated film and yet it pointed out in poignant scenes the ever growing mound of obstacles, Carolyn (Farmiga) was encountering in immersing herself totally in this religion. Carolyn reacted with dislike against the extreme patriarchy and sexism, the strict adherence to a list of do's and don'ts, the dominance by the pastor, and probably the biggest one, the proclamation of hell and Satan-possession for any questioning or deviance from the preachings of the Bible.
Carolyn ends up leaving her husband and the final scene is her thanking the congregation for all the positives she has received throughout her life but also telling them of her need for a search for a more loving and nurturing faith.
My review is probably making this movie out to be a dry and plodding and dull Sunday Sermon film and it is anything BUT that. It was NOT a slow movie by any means. We both rated it a 9.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Sunday, February 26, 2012
GUISEPPE'S RISTORANTE ITALIANO - TUCSON, AZ
it's a small restaurant and the floor is tile. The tables are really close and along one wall are tables set right next to each other; you can literally touch the elbow without straining of your fellow diner. I imperiously with matronly arrogance and senior abruptness, refused the table the young waiter was leading us to. (in the mosh pit) Jean then spotted what turned out to be the best and only good seating area. It was surrounded by 2 walls which cut down on the visuals of masses of people chowing down and also the noise level.
The restaurant did have a large outdoor seating area with some heaters but a loud tenor sax player was out there playing "soft" jazz and neither Jean nor i were interested in having that accompaniment to our dinner.
I had a ragu of sorts with beef and pork and sausage on bowtie pasta and it was absolutely delicious. Bill had pounded thin grilled pork topped with sauteed spinach. It tasted too bland for me but he really liked it. I also had a salad with asparagus (gave the spears to Bill who proclaimed them extraordinarily good) and blue cheese and walnuts and other stuff. The foccacia bread was good and there was olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping.
We would go back with friends but not just the 2 of us.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
SAFE HOUSE
A better than i was expecting action-thriller double-cross CIA film starring Denzel Washington as a rogue agent (there's ALWAYS got to be a rogue - a 'turned' agent in these films) and Ryan Reynolds as a bored and restless landlord of a CIA safe house.
He's stationed in South Africa and nothing has happened for an entire year and he spends lots of time on the phone with his French girlfriend. UNTIL Denzel turns himself into the US consulate in order to escape some thugs out to steal the chip he has which contains info about all the corrupt members of the government. Of course, the thugs turn out to be something else and so does Denzel.
In hindsight, the twists were predictable but still very enjoyable. Denzel did not go over the top at all in his role and Reynolds was good; a nice mix of a naive agent and a man of principle.
The film was way too dark for me and i'm not sure if that was intentional or was the theater's cheapness in using less light bulbs. This is true; i read this article about ways that movie theaters engage in to increase their profit since first run and newly released films cost a lot of money for them to rent. And the other criticism was the camera work when there was an action sequence (which happened a lot). The camera was shady and unsteady and the scenes were shot in this hyper-crystal meth- MTV- drug flashback jerky fashion; maybe that's the vision the young have nowadays because of their constant texting and ipad-ing; but it was too rapid for this senior. I got dizzy and couldnt' even recognize the characters or distinguish who was driving the speeding cars.
He's stationed in South Africa and nothing has happened for an entire year and he spends lots of time on the phone with his French girlfriend. UNTIL Denzel turns himself into the US consulate in order to escape some thugs out to steal the chip he has which contains info about all the corrupt members of the government. Of course, the thugs turn out to be something else and so does Denzel.
In hindsight, the twists were predictable but still very enjoyable. Denzel did not go over the top at all in his role and Reynolds was good; a nice mix of a naive agent and a man of principle.
The film was way too dark for me and i'm not sure if that was intentional or was the theater's cheapness in using less light bulbs. This is true; i read this article about ways that movie theaters engage in to increase their profit since first run and newly released films cost a lot of money for them to rent. And the other criticism was the camera work when there was an action sequence (which happened a lot). The camera was shady and unsteady and the scenes were shot in this hyper-crystal meth- MTV- drug flashback jerky fashion; maybe that's the vision the young have nowadays because of their constant texting and ipad-ing; but it was too rapid for this senior. I got dizzy and couldnt' even recognize the characters or distinguish who was driving the speeding cars.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
WORLD WIDE WRAPPERS - TUCSON, AZ
Bill and I had a wonderful date night. We went to the University area on 4th; parked about 5 blocks away and walked since it was a warm beautiful night. 4th avenue is a young college-dumbed las vegas universal texting and iphone atmosphere. Very exciting.
Our goal was to check out the Food Co-op. We were impressed with the amount of bulk items they had including rare and exotic and unusual herbs, a great selection of teas and spices, nuts, grains, beans, pasta. We bought some morello cherry jam, midnight explosion coffee (and the beans lived up to their name because i was rocketed into the 4th dimension) and black jasmine rice.
Then we ambled down the streets of activity and noise and lights and people. went into some shops - stopped to check out the windows on other shops and eventually landed at this restaurant. Its right next door to the Chocolate Iguana. we ate outside so we could continue enjoying the free populace parade.
We ordered a banana strawberry smoothie (very good) and shared 2 wraps - a Caribbean which had shrimp and a mango sauce and vegetables in a basil and tomato tortilla and a Greek which was stuffed with chicken in a feta sauce with kalamata olives and other goodies. both wraps were very good though i favored the shrimp one.
We finished the evening by having yoghurt at U-swirl in the El Con mall. They have 2 new flavors which i wedded in my bowl - mounds bar and thin mint. both were heavenly and i topped it off with a hard shell of toffee. oh yum.
Our goal was to check out the Food Co-op. We were impressed with the amount of bulk items they had including rare and exotic and unusual herbs, a great selection of teas and spices, nuts, grains, beans, pasta. We bought some morello cherry jam, midnight explosion coffee (and the beans lived up to their name because i was rocketed into the 4th dimension) and black jasmine rice.
Then we ambled down the streets of activity and noise and lights and people. went into some shops - stopped to check out the windows on other shops and eventually landed at this restaurant. Its right next door to the Chocolate Iguana. we ate outside so we could continue enjoying the free populace parade.
We ordered a banana strawberry smoothie (very good) and shared 2 wraps - a Caribbean which had shrimp and a mango sauce and vegetables in a basil and tomato tortilla and a Greek which was stuffed with chicken in a feta sauce with kalamata olives and other goodies. both wraps were very good though i favored the shrimp one.
We finished the evening by having yoghurt at U-swirl in the El Con mall. They have 2 new flavors which i wedded in my bowl - mounds bar and thin mint. both were heavenly and i topped it off with a hard shell of toffee. oh yum.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
50/50
This movie (out now on dvd) is about a twenty-something single guy who gets diagnosed with cancer and the reactions of his best friend and his therapist and his mom (played wonderfully by Angelica Huston) and his girlfriend. Seth Rogen is the best friend and he has a great perfectly timed comedic delivery and also the best and funniest lines in the entire movie. His scenes with the girlfriend of the cancer guy played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt were incredibly caustic and witty and belly laugh worthy.
It is NOT an intended tear-jerker. You will not need a box of kleenix. and it is certainly not a deliberate attempt to stir up emotions of loss like that Bridges of Madison County movie or that sappy The Notebook film. I rated it an 8.5 and Bill gave it a 9.
The only criticism i have is that everyone in the medical field is portrayed as uncaring, abrupt, rude, uncompassionate jerks especially the doctor who makes the cancer diagnosis.
It is NOT an intended tear-jerker. You will not need a box of kleenix. and it is certainly not a deliberate attempt to stir up emotions of loss like that Bridges of Madison County movie or that sappy The Notebook film. I rated it an 8.5 and Bill gave it a 9.
The only criticism i have is that everyone in the medical field is portrayed as uncaring, abrupt, rude, uncompassionate jerks especially the doctor who makes the cancer diagnosis.
Friday, February 10, 2012
WINGS AND RICE - TUCSON, AZ
I usually always order the same thing; the shrimp combo which includes 5 huge lightly fried shrimp with the sauce/glaze of your choice (there are about 15 you can choose from; one of the names is dragon's breath - I always get sesame teriyaki which is sticky sweet with an afterburn of heat.), a skyscraper high mound of shrimp fried rice with hibachi sauce (i always have a generous lunch portion leftover) and a salad with miso dressing.
Bill usually gets the korean short ribs but last night he ordered the chicken katsu which is a large portion of thinly sliced and panko-fried tender white meat with a light dribble of katsu sauce (which is sort of like a spicy creamy ketchup) and a big helping of white rice.
The seating area is not very large but every time we've gone there has always been a couple of tables for us to choose from. Most of their business is take-out. And their prices are reasonable with a 10% senior discount. and always lots of coupons available on their website and facebook.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
LIV CAFE & BISTRO - TUCSON, AZ
This is a relatively new restaurant in St. Philip's Plaza. Its a nice cozy-sized space with tables only. Lovely tile work on the floor and the tables out on the patio. The tile is decorated with green leaf designs but not because Liv is pronounced like leave; (its pronounced like the word live).
The breakfast menu is limited; prices reasonable; portions ladylike and suitable to the Foothills matron crowd. In other words, i would have left hungry if it wasn't for the bagel shellacked and varnished with mega layers of cream cheese per my request.
I ordered a frittata with kalamata olives (too many) and feta cheese, sundried tomatoes and spinach. It was good but not extraordinary. It came with a small amount of hummus which i did not eat and flat bread which i substituted for the bagel; described above. The bagel was large and fresh and toasted just right.
The service was very friendly but could have been more attentive. No one ever came by our table to refill our water glasses and after i asked for more cream cheese (i needed to add another inch) i eventually had to go back up to the counter (which is where you order) and ask for it. One of the waitresses, Melissa, said they were having trouble because they didn't have any more. I wondered why no one had come out to tell me that or the fact that they DID have honey-nut cream cheese which sounded and tasted even better than the plain.
In spite of all that, i would go back for lunch which offered more of a selection. Plus I like the location.
The breakfast menu is limited; prices reasonable; portions ladylike and suitable to the Foothills matron crowd. In other words, i would have left hungry if it wasn't for the bagel shellacked and varnished with mega layers of cream cheese per my request.
I ordered a frittata with kalamata olives (too many) and feta cheese, sundried tomatoes and spinach. It was good but not extraordinary. It came with a small amount of hummus which i did not eat and flat bread which i substituted for the bagel; described above. The bagel was large and fresh and toasted just right.
The service was very friendly but could have been more attentive. No one ever came by our table to refill our water glasses and after i asked for more cream cheese (i needed to add another inch) i eventually had to go back up to the counter (which is where you order) and ask for it. One of the waitresses, Melissa, said they were having trouble because they didn't have any more. I wondered why no one had come out to tell me that or the fact that they DID have honey-nut cream cheese which sounded and tasted even better than the plain.
In spite of all that, i would go back for lunch which offered more of a selection. Plus I like the location.
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