Sundance Student Screening 2020

Yesterday I got to take a group of my students to see Dream Horse as part of the Student Screening Program with the Sundance Film Festival.  Even though arranging field trips is equal parts planning the D-Day invasion and herding cats, this particular field trip always ends up being an amazing experience and yesterday was no exception!  I absolutely loved the film we saw and, more importantly, so did my students!  It is a true story (which is also told in the documentary Dark Horse which premiered at Sundance in 2016) about Jan Vokes (Toni Collette) who lived in an economically depressed village in Wales with her unemployed husband Brian (Owen Teale).  She worked two dead-end jobs, as a checker in a big-box retail store during the day and as a barmaid in the evening, and cared for her elderly parents.  She longed for something to inspire her to get out of bed every day.  One night a man in the bar named Howard Davies (Damian Lewis) brags to the crowd that he was once part of a syndicate that owned a racehorse.  Jan decides that she wants to own a racehorse and recruits Howard to help her.  She uses all of her savings to buy a mare that came in last in every race she ran and then creates her own syndicate of friends from the bar (including the town drunk and a lonely widow) to help her pay the stud fee of a champion.  They name their foal Dream Alliance and keep him on their small allotment of land.  They eventually convince a well-known trainer (Nicholas Farrell) to work with Dream Alliance and, when he begins winning races against all odds, he becomes a symbol of hope for the whole village.  I loved the scenes where the eccentric syndicate members watch the races in the owners' boxes with the aristocracy and I really enjoyed the racing sequences because they are so exhilarating (the students cheered out loud multiple times).  This is such a feel good movie about doing whatever it takes to achieve your dreams and it was perfect for my students!  There was a Q&A after the film with Euros Lyn, the director, and he told the students that despite what people tell them they should always follow their dreams no matter how out of reach they might appear to be!  I loved that!  One student asked him how the people of Wales have responded to the film and he answered that Sundance audiences are the very first to see it but he hopes that all of the audiences respond the way that we did!  This will be my final student screening and I'm glad that I picked a good one to end on!

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2016

Fiddler on the Roof at the Eccles

I have always been a really big fan of the musical Fiddler on the Roof.  I have seen it dozens of times and I even got to play Fruma-Sarah in a production so I was thrilled when the show had a revival on Broadway because I knew that the touring production would eventually come to SLC.  I had the chance to see it last night and it was just delightful!  Tevye (Yehezkel Lazarov) is a poor Jewish dairyman living in the small Russian village of Anatevka.  He clings to his traditional way of life as a protection from the harsh realities of life but his three oldest daughters push against tradition when it comes time to find a match.  As I sat in my seat at the Eccles Theatre I anticipated every single musical number with a huge smile on my face:  "Tradition," "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," "If I Were A Rich Man," "Sabbath Prayer," "To Life," "Sunrise, Sunset," "Do You Love Me," "Far From the Home I Love," "Chavaleh," and "Anatevka,"  It was really hard for me not to sing along because I know every word.  I really liked this production because the sets are very simple and stark and use a lot of weathered wood.  It seemed very appropriate considering the harsh conditions of Russia and it really helped to set the mood.  I also really liked the monochromatic costumes which also served the same purpose.  What made this production seem very fresh and new was the choreography.  I especially enjoyed the staging of "To Life" because the slow-motion dancing as the Jews begin to interact with the Russian villagers is very dramatic.  I also really enjoyed the bottle dance during the wedding (I even liked the fact that one of the dancers dropped his bottle because it made it seem so much more authentic) because it is incredibly athletic (the main dancer could kick his legs so high)!  The entire cast is outstanding but I especially enjoyed Lazarov's interpretation of Tevye because he is almost sarcastic in his delivery.  I laughed out loud when he tried to kiss Golde (Maite Uzal) during "Do You Love Me" and it was heartbreaking to see his anguish during "Chavaleh."  I also really enjoyed Nick Siccone as Motel the tailor, especially when he hides under the wagon when talking to Tevye.  This was such a fun evening for me!  I always love seeing the old classics from my youth because they are the shows that turned me into a fan of musical theatre.  I recommend this production (go here for tickets) because it is sure to put a smile on your face.

Utah Opera's Silent Night

Last night I had the opportunity to see Utah Opera's wonderful production of Silent Night which depicts an actual ceasefire that happened on Christmas Eve in 1914.  World War I is very meaningful to me because of my great-grandfather so I knew that I would enjoy this opera but I absolutely loved it because every aspect of this production is outstanding.  I was moved to tears multiple times.  In Berlin, an opera performance featuring Nikolaus Sprink (Andrew Stenson) and Anna Sorensen (Abigail Rethwisch) is interrupted by the news that Germany is at war.  In a small town in Scotland, William Dale (Stephen Pace) dreams of glory and urges his younger brother Jonathan (Jonathan Johnson) to enlist with him.  In Paris, Madeleine Audebert (Quinn Middleman) is angry that her husband (Efrain Solis) is leaving to go to war while she is pregnant with their first child.  The war commences with some dramatic sequences, including an ill-fated battle between the German, Scottish, and French troops where William is shot.  Jonathan is forced to leave him behind and is comforted by Father Palmer (Troy Cook).  Lieutenant Audebert writes his report of the battle and laments that he has lost his wife's photo (in an incredibly beautiful aria that moved me to tears and not for the last time).  Nikolaus sings of his despair to his memory of Anna.  As all of the soldiers go to sleep, snow begins softly falling (it is a beautiful image).   Anna has arranged for Nikolaus to perform with her for the Kronprinz on Christmas Eve but, after the performance, he insists that he must return to his men so she joins him on the battlefield.  He hears the Scottish regiment singing (with bagpipes) a song filled with longing for home so he begins singing a German Christmas carol.  Soon all of the soldiers are singing, prompting the leaders of the three regiments to meet in no-man's land to arrange a ceasefire for Christmas Eve.  Father Palmer leads them in a mass and then Anna sings an a capella song of peace by candlelight (another beautiful moment that moved me to tears).  My audience literally held their breath through this song and then there was an audible sigh when all of the candles were blown out.  In the morning the ceasefire is over and Jonathan is almost shot in no-man's land.  When it is discovered that he was burying William's body, the leaders once again agree to a ceasefire so that each regiment can bury their dead.  All of the soldiers salute the dead and then there is a plaintive sound of a bagpipe (this just about did me in).  The soldiers come to see the futility of war but each regiment is berated by their commanding officer and ordered to resume the hostilities.  The story is incredibly poignant, the music is simply gorgeous (particularly the music depicting a sunrise on the battlefield), and every singer gives a lovely performance (I was especially impressed with Rethwisch and Solis).  The costumes and all of the props are authentic to the period (I was impressed with the number of guns) and I really enjoyed the use of projections (especially during the battle sequences.)  The Scottish, French, and German bunkers are made of granite and are placed in three tiers on top of each other.  (Spoiler alert!)  These tiers are then transformed into a monument to the fallen at the end of the opera and when the last soldiers leave the stage they reveal poppies at the edge of it (moving me once more to tears).  This opera is beautiful, moving, and very powerful!  I highly recommend getting a ticket to one of the two performances remaining (go here).

The Irishman

Because I watched The Irishman last night, I have now seen all of the Academy Award nominees for Best Picture (click on the titles for my commentaries on Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood,  Parasite,  Little Women,  Jojo Rabbit,  Joker,  Ford v Ferrari,  1917,  and Marriage Story).  I really wish that I had been able to see The Irishman when it screened at the Broadway because I was very distracted watching it at home on Netflix.  It is three and half hours long and, while it is filled with brilliant performances, it is definitely a slow burn.  Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro), a veteran of the Anzio Campaign in World War II, is an elderly man living out his final days in a nursing home.  He begins recounting his experiences as a hitman for the Bufalino crime family to an unseen listener.  The action then moves back and forth between a long and meandering cross-country road trip, that is incredibly portentous, and the chronological accumulation of detail telling of how Sheeran comes to be on this road trip.  He is a driver for a meat company and begins stealing from the company's shipments to sell to a local gangster (Bobby Canavale).  When he is caught, he is successfully defended by union lawyer Bill Bufalino (Ray Romano) who introduces him to his cousin Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci), the head of a well-known Pennsylvania crime family.  He makes himself useful to Russell and other members of the crime family and eventually becomes their top hitman.  Russell then introduces him to his associate Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino), the head of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and he becomes his friend and bodyguard while Hoffa deals with a threat from a rising teamster (Stephen Graham) and a witch hunt by Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy (Jack Huston).  Eventually, Hoffa becomes a loose cannon and the Bufalino family sends Sheeran to deal with him.  He is a dispassionate killer but when he comes to the end of his life Sheeran is melancholy, alone, and alienated from his daughters.  He tries to find a measure of solace by confessing to a priest but he ultimately feels no remorse.  Because Sheeran is such a cold-blooded killer, most of the action sequences seem oddly flat (which is why I found it to be a bit boring) and visually uninspiring.  Also, given the circumstances surrounding Jimmy Hoffa's "disappearance" and the lack of corroboration in the real Sheeran's account I thought it was odd that Scorsese chose to portray a certain scene at face value.  A little ambiguity would have been more interesting, in my opinion.  Much has been made of the digital de-aging techniques used on the main cast and I did find it a bit distracting at first but, eventually, I didn't even notice it any more.  It goes without saying that both De Niro and Pacino are amazing; however, I was most impressed with the quiet restraint (which is terrifying) in Pesci's performance because he is normally so bombastic.  I also really enjoyed Anna Pacquin as Sheeran's estranged daughter because, even though she has almost no dialogue, she is essentially his missing conscience and her scenes are very powerful.  This movie is an almost heartbreaking meditation on confronting mortality but it takes a long time to get there so I recommend seeing it in a theater (it will probably be re-released in conjunction with the Oscars) where there will be fewer distractions.

Note:  Now that I have seen all of the nominees, my pick for Best Picture is 1917.  It is remarkable!  Go see it!

Marriage Story

The Academy Award nominations were announced yesterday and I have seen all of the nominees for Best Picture (click on the titles for my commentaries on Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood, Parasite, Little Women, Jojo Rabbit, Joker, Ford v Ferrari, and 1917) except two of them and, luckily, both of are currently streaming on Netflix.  Since I always like to see all of the nominees, I decided to watch Marriage Story last night and I thought it was a thoughtful exploration of a relationship that has disintegrated with incredible performances from Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson.  Charlie (Driver) is a brilliant theatre director in New York City and his wife Nicole (Johansson) is a former Hollywood star who relocated to New York to be with him and star in his productions.  At first she was the main draw for the fledgling theatre company but now he has become the toast of the town and she is feeling more and more insignificant.  When Nicole is offered a pilot for a TV show in Los Angeles she decides to take it and wants them to move there with their eight-year-old son Henry (Azhy Robertson).  Charlie wants the family to stay in New York and this exacerbates all of the underlying problems within the marriage.  They initially agree to handle the divorce themselves in an amicable manner but Nicole is advised by a producer on her show to hire Nora Fanshaw (Laura Dern) which causes Charlie to hire Jay Marotta (Ray Liotta) in retaliation and it quickly becomes acrimonious.  When things spiral out of control the two of them try to work it out themselves leading to an incredibly visceral confrontation.  What is extraordinary about this movie is that both characters are highly sympathetic.  Nicole just wants to have a voice again after years of being taken for granted and Charlie feels blindsided by Nicole's decision and doesn't want to lose his son.  They are both inherently decent people (as evidenced in the opening voice-over where they talk about what they love about each other) who end up doing terrible things in the name of winning and their journey to redemption is very compelling.  Johansson is as vulnerable as I have ever seen her, particularly when she talks about meeting Charlie for the first time, and Dern gives another fantastic performance, especially in a speech about the double standard for mothers.  However, I was blown away by Driver (I hope he wins Best Actor).  He is brilliant when he sings "Being Alive" in a piano bar after signing the divorce papers but he is also so heartbreaking in the quieter moments, such as when he sees that his pictures have been removed from his mother-in-law's house and when he reads Nicole's letter.  This is a movie that will make you laugh and cry and I highly recommend it.

Note:  My review of The Irishman (also streaming on Netflix) is coming tomorrow.

Escape to Margaritaville in Las Vegas

I received a season subscription to Broadway Las Vegas for Christmas (I think the Smith Center is a fantastic venue and I don't mind the drive from SLC to Las Vegas) and the first show was Escape to Margaritaville last night.  The story is basically the lyrics to Jimmy Buffet's classic song "Margaritaville" but it features a lot of other Jimmy Buffet songs and it was a lot of fun!  Tully (Chris Clark) is wasting away as the singer at the Margaritaville Hotel and Resort on a tropical island.  He enjoys island life because his relationships with women only last for as long as they are on vacation.  Tammy (Shelly Lynn Walsh) and Rachel (Sarah Hinrichsen) travel to the island for one last fling before Tammy gets married.  Rachel is driven and uptight but Tully is able to get her to relax and they spend the whole week together.  Meanwhile, Tammy begins a flirtation with the bartender Brick (Peter Michael Jordan).  In addition, J.D. (Patrick Cogan), a beach bum who is perpetually searching for his lost shaker of salt, tries to woo Marley (Rachel Lyn Fobbs), the owner of the hotel.  When it is time for the women to go home, Tully realizes that he is in love with Rachel and Tammy is having second thoughts about her upcoming wedding.  When a volcano threatens the island, Tully and Brick decide to find Rachel and Tammy but will the women feel the same when they are not on island time?  It is really clever how Buffet's songs are incorporated into the story, especially "License to Chill," "Fins," "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere," "Changes in Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes," "Margaritaville," "Come Monday," and "One Particular Harbor."  I did think that "Cheeseburger in Paradise" was a little cheesy (pun intended) but my very favorite number was "Why Don't We Get Drunk" because it involved some audience participation for one particular word!  The singing and dancing were great and I enjoyed watching the incredibly talented band on stage (I really love steel drums).  This wasn't the greatest musical I have ever seen but it was such a blast watching it with a boisterous crowd filled with Jimmy Buffet fans (many were dressed for the islands) and quick road trips to Las Vegas are always a lot of fun!

1917

I have had a lifelong fascination with World War I (my great-grandfather was wounded in the Battle of Ypres and left for dead on the battlefield until he was found alive by his brother) so I have been anticipating the movie 1917 for months.  I was finally able to see it last night with my Dad and the hype is real!  This movie is absolutely brilliant!  At the height of WWI in northern France, General Erinmore (Colin Firth) sends two young soldiers, Lance Corporal Will Schofield (George MacKay) and Lance Corporal Tom Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman), on a desperate mission across no-man's land to deliver a message to Colonel Mackenzie (Benedict Cumberbatch).  Thinking that the German forces are on the run, Mackenzie is about to attack but Erinmore has received aerial reconnaissance photos that show the Germans are waiting to ambush the regiment.  Communications have been cut so Schofield and Blake are the only hope to avoid the massacre of 1600 soldiers, including Blake's older brother.  Everything about this movie is outstanding!  The story about the futility of war is compelling and full of so much pathos that I was crying uncontrollably by the end of it (aspects of the story reminded me of my very favorite movie Gallipoli which is what started my tears).  MacKay gives an astonishing and physically grueling performance as a jaded soldier who initially doesn't want to go on the mission because he has seen action at the Somme but eventually finds a meaningful reason to continue.  His character's arc is incredibly profound and the final shot had me crying once again.  The action is intense and completely immersive (it is as if you are in the trenches with the soldiers) due to the elaborately choreographed camera shots which give the impression of one long and continuous take.  It is a technical achievement that left me stunned.  I have long been a fan of Roger Deakins (I loved the cinematography in Blade Runner 2049) and his use of light and shadow while Schofield runs through the bombed out city of Ecoust is mesmerizing.  I also loved the evocative score by Thomas Newman because it adds so much to the intensity and emotion.  I highly recommend this movie (both my Dad and I want to see it again) and, even though the nominations haven't been announced yet, it is my pick for the Best Picture Academy Award!

A Hidden Life

The final movie in my winter break marathon (and my final movie for 2019) was A Hidden Life which I saw on New Year's Eve.  It tells the true story of Franz Jagerstatter, an Austrian conscientious objector during World War II.  It is emotionally exhausting to watch but it is also beautiful and elegiac (and one of Terrence Malick's most linear narratives).  The movie begins by showing Franz (August Diehl), his wife Fani (Valerie Pachner), and their three daughters enjoying their simple life as hard-working farmers in a valley in the Austrian mountains.  Their idyllic life is shattered when they hear the rumblings of fighter planes overhead and Franz is called up for basic training.  He is horrified by what he sees (in the clever use of black and white archival footage of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis) but, after France is occupied and the war is presumed over, he is sent home.  But as the war rages on, he lives in fear that he will be called up again every time he sees a bicycle bringing a telegraph go by.  He is tormented by the fact that he will have to swear an oath to Hitler.  He knows that he cannot do something that is against his beliefs but he fears for what will happen to his wife and children if he is condemned as a traitor.  As a devout Catholic, he consults his priest and then the bishop, but they urge him to consider his family.  He ultimately refuses to take the oath, is put in prison in Berlin where he is routinely mistreated, and condemned by a military tribunal while Fani endures hostility from the people in her village.  A lawyer tells Franz that if he takes a non-combat role in the army the charges will be dropped but he will still have to take the oath.  Fani comes to visit him in prison and gives him the strength to do what he feels he must.  Jagerstatter is a man who refuses to take part in the evil he sees all around him so I found his story to be particularly salient for these troubled times and I was very invested in its outcome.  I also found it to be a profoundly spiritual exploration of free will.  However, the narrative moves very slowly (albeit with some beautiful shots of the Austrian mountains and valleys) so not everyone is going to enjoy it.  Both Diehl and Pachner give emotional performances and I also enjoyed Matthias Schoenaerts as a soldier who interrogates Franz and Bruno Ganz (in his final role) as a judge in the military tribunal who tries to understand his motives.  It was sometimes a difficult movie to watch but I would highly recommend it.

The Family Upstairs

Last night I went to a meeting of my book club to discuss the latest selection, The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell. We had a very lively discussion with a great moderator and I enjoyed it so much because I discovered many new insights that I had not thought about while I was reading it.  This riveting psychological thriller begins when Libby, who was adopted as a baby, turns 25 and discovers that she has inherited a large mansion in a highly desirable neighborhood in London. She also discovers that her birth parents and an unidentified stranger died in the house in an apparent suicide pact and that she has two siblings who have not been heard from since. She enlists the help of a reporter who once covered the case to help her find the truth and what she discovers is far more sinister than she could have imagined.  The narrative alternates between Libby's search for the truth, her brother Henry's recollections from the past about a charismatic man named David who moved into the house with his family and turned their lives into a nightmare, and her sister Lucy's struggle to survive in the present after the trauma of her childhood. All of the narrators are very compelling, especially Henry because he is so unreliable, and I read well into the night because I had to uncover the mystery of what happened in that house (which is almost a character in and of itself). It is incredibly suspenseful and there are quite a few twists and turns, some of which I wasn't expecting, My only complaint is that there are a lot of main characters to keep track of as well as quite a few secondary characters that are not as developed and do not add much to the story. This, along with alternating between the past and the present, sometimes makes it a bit confusing. As I mentioned, we had a great discussion about the themes of manipulation and how easy is it was for David to gain control of the vulnerable Lamb family, of trauma and how it continues to affect Lucy's decision-making even after leaving the traumatic situation, of identity and how learning about the past impacts Libby's perception of herself, and obsession with the past and how it consumes Henry's life. Almost everyone in the book club really liked this one (two women sitting near us who were listening in on our discussion came over and asked the name of the book because they thought it sounded so interesting) and I would definitely recommend it.

Note:  Next month's selection is Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano.  Go here for more information and to RSVP at a Barnes & Noble near you.  If you are local, consider joining us at the Layton Barnes & Noble on Feb. 4 because we have a fun and lively group!

Uncut Gems

Unbelievably, the next movie in my winter break marathon was Uncut Gems.  I usually try to avoid movies starring Adam Sandler because I think his humor is really crude but I am a huge fan of the Safdie Brothers and the trailer really intrigued me.  Howard Ratner (Sandler) is a jeweler in New York's Diamond District and he is also a gambling addict who is in over his head with a dangerous loan shark (Eric Bogosian) who wants his money.  After watching a documentary about opals in Ethiopia, he purchases a large rock containing rare black opals which he values at over $1,000,000.  He plans on selling it at auction in order to pay his gambling debts but Kevin Garnett (playing himself), who is a customer in his store, sees it and feels a deep connection to it.  He asks to keep it to bring him luck during his NBA playoff game later that night against the Sixers.  Ratner reluctantly agrees but keeps Garnett's NBA Championship ring as collateral which he immediately pawns in order to place a bet on the Celtics.  The Celtics win but he finds out that his loan shark canceled the bet and took the money from his bookie as partial payment.  Garnett, thinking that the opals brought him luck, doesn't want to give the rock back which causes trouble for Ratner who has scheduled it for auction.  Ratner becomes more and more desperate to get the rock back and pay off the loan shark which culminates in another wild bet on the Celtics to win Game 7.   Ratner is an outrageous character who is estranged from his wife Dinah (Idina Menzel), having an affair with Julia (Julia Fox), an employee, and hustling everyone in his life, including his father-in-law (Judd Hirsch), to get himself out of trouble.  Sandler gives the best performance of his career.  He obviously excels at portraying Ratner's frenetic energy but he is also surprisingly vulnerable, especially in a scene with his teenage daughter (Noa Fisher) and a scene where he realizes that everything is falling apart.  I was also quite impressed with Garnett because he is essentially a foil to Ratner.  Much like in Good Time, another movie by the Safdie Brothers, this features hand held camera work that follows Ratner's every move as if you were right there with him so you feel his ever increasing desperation.  I was on the edge of my seat the whole time because, even though Ratner is definitely an anti-hero, I found his journey very compelling and wanted him to succeed.  This movie is a profound exploration of what greed can do to a man's soul but it is filled with sex, violence, and profanity so not everyone is going to enjoy it.  I think it is brilliant!

Bombshell

Next in my winter break movie marathon was Bombshell which tells the true story of how the women of Fox News took down the head of the network.  When Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) complains that her fellow male anchors on Fox & Friends are sexually harassing her, she is demoted to a program at a less desirable time and then eventually fired.  She decides to sue the network but her lawyers tell her that she has a better case against Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) who has sexually harassed her as well.  Her lawyers also tell her that she will have a better case if other women come forward and many former employees do.  However, a current employee will have more of an impact but the network puts pressure on the woman to support Ailes.  Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron), the most powerful female anchor at Fox, and Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie), a young associate producer trying to advance, eventually come forward.  The story is both compelling and very timely, particularly a scene which shows what all the women have to go through before going on air (there are rows and rows of brightly colored form-fitting sheath dresses and high-heeled shoes) and a disturbing scene where Ailes, while watching a live broadcast, screams to the cameraman to pull back so he can see the anchor's legs because that is what he is paying her for.  Theron gives an incredible performance, almost disappearing into the role, especially in a scene where she finally breaks down about the fact that the environment is so toxic at Fox.  I was most impressed with Robbie because her role is incredibly demanding and she definitely delivers!  There is a particularly charged scene with Lithgow where she is asked by Ailes to lift her skirt higher and higher and you can see her discomfort mingled with a desire to please on her face.  It is so uncomfortable to watch but incredibly powerful.  I found all of the actors playing Fox personalities, such as Kevin Dorff as Bill O'Reilly, Spencer Garrett as Sean Hannity, Bree Condon as Kimberly Guilfoyle, Marc Evan Jackson as Chris Wallace, Tony Plana as Geraldo Rivera, and Alanna Ubach as Jeanine Pirro, to be very amusing.  I was, however, a bit disappointed that Kidman did not have much of a role.  I also found the story to be a bit safe for a movie called Bombshell.  It was interesting and I recommend it for the performances.

Little Women

The next movie in my winter break marathon was Little Women which I saw with both of my sisters late at night on Christmas.  I could not have loved this movie more!  In fact, I loved everything about it!  This movie is an updated version of the beloved novel by Louisa May Alcott recounting how the March sisters, including Jo (Saoirse Ronan), Meg (Emma Watson), Amy (Florence Pugh), and Beth (Eliza Scanlen), come of age in Concord, Massachusetts during the Civil War.  The movie begins with Jo pursuing her dream of being a writer in New York.  She is forced to compromise in order to sell her stories and her friend and fellow resident at her boardinghouse, Friedrich Bhaer (Louis Garrell), criticizes her for it which angers her.  There are then flashbacks to the trials and triumphs of her adolescence with her sisters and mother "Marmee" (Laura Dern), her neighbor Theodore "Laurie" Laurence (Timothee Chalamet), his grandfather Mr. Laurence (Chris Cooper), and her Aunt March (Meryl Streep).  In between these flashbacks we see Jo encounter sorrow in the death of a sister, disappointment in love with Laurie, redemption as she writes a story to be proud of, and, ultimately, love with Friedrich.  I really love the structure of the narrative because every time there is a flashback it is a memory that informs the present situation.  We learn why Beth is ill, why Meg wants beautiful things, why Amy wants to marry well, and why Jo is so determined to succeed.  The cast is absolutely perfect!  I really love Ronan's portrayal of Jo's strength, especially when she negotiates with her publisher for control of the copyright for her book, and her vulnerability, particularly when she rethinks turning down Laurie's proposal because she is lonely.  However, I was so impressed by Pugh's performance because Amy is a character that I usually dislike (I always want Jo to end up with Laurie).  She portrays Amy as precocious rather than bratty and I liked the fact that she secretly loves Laurie throughout the whole movie because it makes their relationship more understandable.  Chalamet is so charming as Laurie, Dern (who is hit or miss with me) is perfect as Marmee, Cooper is more sentimental rather than curmudgeonly as Mr. Laurence, and Streep steals every scene she is in as Aunt March.  I love the costumes, the production design (especially the attic in the March house where the sisters perform their plays), and the beautiful score by Alexandre Desplat (one of my favorite film composers).  I am sure that this is a movie that I will watch over and over again (I've already seen it twice) and I highly recommend it for a lovely movie viewing experience!

Debussy's La Mer

I specifically picked last night's Utah Symphony concert because I anticipated that I would need something to get me through the first days back to school after winter break.  It actually wasn't that bad but I am still glad I picked this concert because it was wonderful.  I wasn't familiar with any of the pieces that were performed but I loved them all!  The orchestra began with Leonore Overture No. 3 (from the opera that was eventually renamed Fidelio) by Ludwig van Beethoven.  This tells the story of Florestan, a man who has been unjustly imprisoned in a gloomy dungeon, and it is very atmospheric but then it becomes triumphant as he contemplates his redemption.  My favorite part was a dramatic fanfare by a solo trumpet off stage, which represents Florestan's jailer giving him a reprieve.  Next came Edgar Meyer's Violin Concerto featuring Associate Concertmaster Kathryn Eberle as soloist.  This piece was originally commissioned for Hilary Hahn, a frequent soloist with the Utah Symphony, and I absolutely loved it.  It is very beautiful and it has a bluegrass feel to it.  I especially loved the duet between the solo violin and a contrabassoon.  Eberle was amazing (I always enjoy her as a soloist) and she received a rousing standing ovation.  After the intermission, the orchestra played a quirky piece called Moler by Arlene Sierra.  I found this piece to be a bit cacophonous but I kind of dug it.  The concert concluded with La Mer by Claude Debussy and it was absolutely lovely.  Each of the three movements represent a different period of time during a day at sea.  I really enjoyed the first movement because there were several different melodies played briefly by various sections of the orchestra and it sounded like waves that were gathering momentum and then dissipating.  It was really cool!  For the encore, the orchestra played two waltzes by Johann Strauss Jr. to ring in the new year, as they do in Vienna, complete with confetti and a champagne toast by conductor Conner Covington.  It was so fun!  This program will be repeated again at tonight's concert (go here for tickets) and trust me when I say that you don't want to miss it!

Note:  I will return to my reviews of the movies I saw over winter break tomorrow!

Cats

Unfortunately, the next movie in my winter break marathon was Cats.  I saw the stage musical Cats for the first time on a trip to London.  I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I had ever seen but the friends I saw it with absolutely loved it!  Clearly I was missing something (to be fair I saw it the night after I saw Les Miserables, which was a dream come true, so almost anything would have been anticlimactic after that).  I decided that I needed to see it again so I went with my best friend and her family when the Broadway touring company came to SLC.  They were amazed by it and, once again, I was completely underwhelmed.  I have since seen it several more times and, even though it is not my favorite, I have come to appreciate the choreography and the song "Memory."  When I saw the trailers for the movie adaptation, the CGI looked horrible but I thought that, with Andy Blankenbuehler of Hamilton as choreographer, the dancing would be fantastic, and, with Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella, "Memory" would be great so I decided to see it on Christmas Eve.  It was even worse than I was anticipating.  There really isn't a plot because it is about a gang of cats, known as Jellicles, who compete to be the chosen one who gets to go to the Heaviside Layer and be reborn into a different life.  It is a weird premise but this is not the main problem with the movie.  The CGI is an absolute mess and I found the cat characters to be so strange looking.  Some of them have human hands and feet, sometimes their heads just seem to be floating on their bodies, and their proportions are so inconsistent.  Many of the musical numbers are incredibly bizarre, especially "The Gumbie Cat" which is truly horrific with Rebel Wilson as Jennyanydots eating mice and cockroaches with faces and "The Jellicle Ball" which is basically a cat orgy (several people walked out of my screening after this).  As much as I love Judi Dench, I was not a fan of her performance as Old Deuteronomy because she is not really a great singer and she always seems so confused (maybe she had too much of Bombalurina's catnip).  I also didn't really care for Idris Elba as Macavity because his characterization is really evil rather than mischievous.   What was most disappointing for me was the dancing because it could have been so amazing.   There are lots of fast cuts and changes in angles so we never get to see sustained shots of the dancing.  There is one exception when Victoria, played by Francesca Hayward, pirouettes around the room and it is so exhilarating that it makes me wonder what might have been.  Finally, I didn't even like Hudson's version of "Memory."  I have seen both Elaine Paige, who originated the role of Grizabella in the West End, and Betty Buckley, who performed the role on Broadway, sing it live with the Utah Symphony and Hudson's version doesn't hold a candle to theirs.  I thought she sounded much too angry and I was distracted by the snot running down her face.  I did, rather surprisingly, enjoy James Corden's version of "Bustopher Jones" and I loved Taylor Swift's version of "Macavity" but there is just so much that is truly awful that I can't possibly recommend it.

Jumanji: The Next Level

As in years past, I spent much of my winter break in a darkened movie theater and I loved it!  Now that I am back to school I will review the movies that I saw over the break beginning with Jumanji: The Next Level.  During winter break two years ago I asked Sean and Tashena to pick a movie that I could take them to and they picked Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.  I didn't particularly want to see this movie but I ended up really enjoying it!  When we found out about the sequel, Sean and I waited until Tashena came home for winter break so that we could see it together.  We all liked it.  Spencer (Alex Wolff), Fridge (Ser'Darius Blain), Martha (Morgan Turner), and Bethany (Madison Iseman) have returned home from college and plan a reunion.  Spencer, who is struggling in college, feels apprehensive about meeting everyone and decides to repair the Jumanji game so that he can be the hero Dr. Xander "Smolder" Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson) again to gain some confidence.  When Spencer doesn't show up to the reunion, the others go to his house and meet his Grandpa Eddie (Danny DeVito) and Eddie's former friend and business partner Milo (Danny Glover).  They find the repaired Jumanji game and decide to play in order to bring Spencer back.  Martha is once again Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan) but Fridge becomes Dr. Sheldon "Shelly" Osborn (Jack Black), Eddie becomes Dr. Bravestone, and Milo becomes Franklin "Mouse" Finbar (Kevin Hart).  Bethany is left behind and must find former player Alex (Colin Hanks) to help her get back into the game.  Alex once again becomes Jefferson "Seaplane" McDonough (Nick Jonas) and Bethany becomes a horse named Cyclone.  They eventually find Spencer, who has become Ming Fleetfoot (Awkwafina), and learn that they must return the Falcon's Heart, a magical necklace stolen by Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann), to the sunlight in order to end the drought in Jumanji and win the game.  There are some fun action sequences in the desert while the avatars are chased by ostriches, over suspension bridges while they are chased by Mandrill monkeys, and in a fortress on a snow-covered mountain.  However, once again, what makes this movie so much fun is that the characters have the physical characteristics of their avatars but keep their own personalities.  This creates a lot of physical comedy because Grandpa Eddie is now physically strong and goes looking for fights and Fridge is not used to being so physically challenged.  All of the actors do a great job but I especially enjoyed Kevin Hart because he does a perfect imitation of Danny Glover.  In my opinion, it is not quite as funny as the first movie but I laughed out loud multiple times and we had a lot of fun watching it.  I recommend it to fans of the original.