Category Archives: true story

Outlaw King a Scottish Tale From the History Books

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Co-written and directed by David Mackenzie, Outlaw King follows Robert the Bruce, played by Chris Pine. His life is transformed from defeated noble to a king to an outlaw as he struggles to reclaim medieval Scotland from occupation. Ambushed and reduced to a handful of supporters, Robert resolves himself to strike back against King Edward of England’s mighty army.

Robert is among the Scottish nobles who submitted to the occupying English King, Edward, played by Stephen Dillane.  A marriage is arranged between Robert and Elizabeth de Burgh, played by Florence Pugh, a daughter of Edward’s ally.

An unnerving peace seems the only way forward which Robert and his family reluctantly accept. His relationship with his wife is feisty as they get to know each other. But crippling taxes, relentless force, men and boys being coerced under obligations of the feudal system to fight for King Edward only strengthen the rising rebellious emotions amongst the Scots.

Major events trigger a change in the overall climate of Scotland. The death of the family patriarch Bruce Senior, played by James Cosmo, news of the brutal demise of former rebel leader William Wallace, and finally the murder of Robert’s rival John Comyn, played by Callan Mulvey.

With the help of the Scottish Church – including Bishop Lamberton, played by Paul Blair, Robert resolves to become king and try to unify a divided country – many of whom do not want more war and are opposed to him because of their own blood ties.

If you know your Scottish history, you know the outcome of the story. I can give you a hint, though, it is one of the greatest comeback stories in history. “…I couldn’t shake the feeling that the period between 1304 and 1307 was where the most extreme things were happening – and this is what we have focused on. We conflated some characters and events in the interests of drama and time, but we have broadly been very faithful to the recorded history or this timeframe,” explained Mackenzie.

The Netflix produced movie will hopefully turn out to be a movie worth watching. So much of Scotland’s yesteryear events are page turners in historical books.

Scottish director Mackenzie whose body of work includes Hell or High Water and Young Adam is an excellent choice for this epic movie. Here are a couple of clips from Outlaw King. Nothing like the trailer but poignant in terms of key points in the movie’s storyline.

 

“I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story”

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IAmBigBird DVD-3D

The big yellow feathered bird on Sesame Street has been a household icon for decades. The documentary I Am Big Bird celebrates more than Caroll Spinney’s life and contributions performing Big Bird for over 40 years. The movie celebrates the making of the Muppets and puppeteers far and wide.

Directors Dave LaMattina and Chad N. Walker keep the pace even as they feature family home movies of Spinney’s beginnings in both his personal life and career. Interviews with Spinney, his family, the original cast and crew of Sesame Street relate tales of early educational television.

For example, Spinney and some of the crew tell a time in the early days when he almost quit the Muppets because he felt he wasn’t contributing enough to the show. But he was talked out of it, and soon Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, Spinney’s other Muppet persona, became well-known puppets on Sesame Street.  Eventually, Big Bird became the most popular character on the show.

The interviews openly discuss his first marriage, which resulted in three dearly loved children, who are also interviewed in the documentary, clearly showing their love for their dad. Unfortunately, he and their mother divorced, and Spinney suffered through the ordeal.

He met the girl of his dreams after three unsuccessful attempts to date her. Debra tells the story so pleasantly. You can’t help but admire their relationship. Debra is interviewed at length in the movie, and her love and understanding of Spinney are very clear. Other items in the documentary are surprising and out of the ordinary. Never explained was why they didn’t have children of their own.

Finding out the staggering complexity of Spinney’s work in the puppet costume is spellbinding.  The demands alone for being a Muppet are amazing, but Big Bird is so much more complex and taxing on Spinney’s body. You need to see it. Just being a Muppet is highly demanding, but to be Big Bird is even more so.

The documentary shines a light on Muppets creator and genius Jim Henson. Clearly, a very good friend of the Spinney, seeing Henson, is heartfelt. The documentary shows footage and memories of working alongside Henson. Big Bird sang “It’s Not Easy Being Green” before the packed cathedral at Henson’s funeral, one of the most memorable scenes in the documentary.

“Families of the World: Families of Puerto Rico”

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FamilyPR

I thought I’d take a look at one of the multi-award-winning live-action Families of the World series episodes called Families of Puerto Rico. The purpose of the series is to give an intimate portrait of the lives of people in countries around the globe.

Another reason I decided to view the Puerto Rico DVD is the recognition of National Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15-October 15, 2015. Known as a time to recognize the contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States and to celebrate their heritage and culture.

The Puerto Rico episode introduces an adorable nine-year-old boy named Jose. He lives with his mother, father and sister Tanya, in the capital city of San Juan. A hurricane is on its way, so Jose and his family are making preparations while still going about their day, which includes school for Jose and his sister, and work for their parents. Jose shares the history of his homeland’s name. He explains the island of Borinquen was renamed Puerto Rico by the Spanish after a visit and was claimed by explorer Christopher Columbus. He also touches on what “good manners” mean in his country, and his desire to be a veterinarian when he grows up.

The series also introduces eight-year-old Laura. She lives on a farm with her mother and father. She attends private school more than an hour away, learning both English and Spanish while her parents work.  She talks about her weekly piano lesson and introduces her pet Coquis frog. Later she visits the world’s largest radio telescope to listen to radio waves from outer space and reads before turning in for the day.

I enjoyed visiting these two children and learning about another culture. I recommend the series because looking at other cultures helps us better understand the world.

Cusack and Dano Play Brian Wilson in “Love & Mercy”

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Love & Mercy delves into the part of the entertainment industry where evil people lurk. Such people control and manipulate the artist while feeding off the artist’s life force, creativity, energy force or whatever you want to call it. There are not a lot of these life suckers, but the few that are there can wreak havoc. This movie answers the questions of what happened to Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Robin Williams and so forth. Luckily, Brian Wilson meets a woman who has the tenacity to help him and save his life.

The movie, directed by Bill Pohlad, his second film as a director, takes a refreshing and almost clandestine approach to the story about Beach Boys co-founder and songwriter Brian Wilson. Two very talented actors play Wilson in different stages of his life. Paul Dano is the younger Brian. Here we see him with his cousin and a good friend; together, they launched the Beach Boys musical group in the early 1960’s. John Cusack is Brian in the 1980’s while under the control of his ingenious and vicious psychologist, Dr. Eugene Landy, played truthfully by Paul Giamatti.

The story flashes forward and back while twisting the lives of both the young Brian and the old Brian. Watching young Brian create memorable music, we see a whiz kid. He starts with “surfer” music and moves to more complex studio-produced music. During this time, we hear some great music by the young Brian Wilson. He is a unique soul, creating hit song after hit song.

He did have problems to face, such as not wanting to fly in an airplane or being on the road with the Beach Boys. So, he refused to go on the road and instead worked in the studio. He also took popular recreational drugs at the time, which probably caused all his problems. Some may label him, while others would say he did have demons, but psychiatric treatment is not the answer.

Dano is great as the young Wilson. His performance captures Wilson and his various mood swings and eccentricities. Here, the viewer must not mistake this for mental illness. He is a genius while conversing about the mind and spirit. The older Wilson is constantly under the psychotherapy of Landy’s 24-hour surveillance and over-medication, and misdiagnosis. He blatantly manipulates Wilson, guising help with a colorized screen of undermining half-truths, invalidation and total lies.

The older Wilson decides he wants a new Cadillac and meets a saleswoman, and his champion, Melinda Ledbetter, played brilliantly by Elizabeth Banks. They fall for each other and begin dating, supervised by Landy and his associates. History will prove that Landy had other interests in Wilson besides his mental health, as Melinda touches on when she confronts the ill-intentioned psychologist.

At first, the flashbacks are a little annoying because the younger Wilson and the older Wilson are two very different people. After a while, it all makes sense. Both the young and old versions are hard to watch, yet Melinda proposes a breath of hope. And when she confronts Landy, I cheer her on. She does the right thing and doesn’t smack him in his demented face as he shrinks back from her absolutely determined smile. She saves Wilson and flourishes.

Lifetime Movie “Whitney”

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whitneydvd

Whitney Houston will always be one of the greatest singers of her generation and beyond. Her untimely death shocked the world, but didn’t surprise the few who knew her so well. In the made-for-television movie Whitney, directed by Angela Bassett and released by Lifetime, we are shown, as spectators, the rise and fall of a beloved celebrity.

Basset’s take on the movie is told in a heroic way, and it deserves to be seen by those who entered the fandom for Whitney’s voice and acting talent and who felt deep sorrow over her demise. Watching the movie, I was drawn into the story by Anastas Michos’s cinematic talent, with his long, silent shots that kept the drama raw in an artsy way. The movie felt incredibly real and often ugly,

Basset remains objective throughout the movie, and I wondered whether the Houston family sanctioned it. The director didn’t slam the legend, but let the story unfold, so I could see what happened to Whitney.

Yet, I still felt empty at the end with unanswered questions. What destroyed her life? What were the factors involved? Was it her husband’s immoral lifestyle that influenced her?

Any fan of this multi-talented star will enjoy this movie despite the lack of real details.

There are a couple of issues to consider when viewing this movie. It appears the scenes are reenactments, yet there is no backstory and no foreshadowing. As a result, the movie lacks character development that indicates how Whitney became the celebrity who accidentally drowned in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.  We are not given a hint as to why and how she started taking drugs. I would have liked to have seen Basset take this into consideration because the story would have been more interesting. Of course, it is hard to get into an individual’s soul, but I am sure Whitney’s close friends and family could have provided key information.

Yaya DaCosta as Whitney is brilliant, and she has mastered Whitney’s mannerisms. Her singing is flawless and believable, with Deborah Cox’s vocals performed well. Arlen Escarpeta, who plays Whitney’s ex-husband Bobby, nails the part as a celebrity.

Viewers might quickly blame Bobby for Whitney’s demise, and rightly so. He was the man in her life who should have protected her from the evils of stardom. Most of us wish he had protected her, or wish she had found refuge elsewhere in the arms of a religion or a true friend who knew how to help her.