47 Meters Down

I have made some great new friends who really love movies.  Last Friday night I met one of them for dinner and a movie.  We had Indian food and then saw 47 Meters Down and it was such a fun night.  Two sisters, Lisa (Mandy Moore) and Kate (Claire Holt), are on vacation in Mexico when they decide to dive in a shark cage.  Lisa is extremely apprehensive because she doesn't have any diving experience, the boat is old and rusty, and the captain (Mathew Modine) illegally chums the water to attract the sharks but she ultimately decides to go because her ex-boyfriend accused her of being boring.  After a great experience interacting with the sharks, the winch on the boat holding the cage breaks and the girls plummet, you guessed it, 47 meters down.  They only have an hour's worth of air in their tanks, they are surrounded by sharks, and they can't ascend quickly or they will get the bends.  Will they survive?  It is a taut thriller filled with suspense and I think I jumped ten feet every time a shark appeared.  My friend had seen it before and even she jumped during certain scenes.  The sharks are all CGI but I, obviously, thought they were extremely realistic.  Mandy Moore and Claire Holt won't win any acting awards and some of the dialogue is a bit cringe-worthy ("Oh my God!  The shark almost got me!") but I think this movie is a lot of fun.  It is the perfect summer movie to see with friends on a Friday night!

Dirty Dancing at the Eccles

On Thursday night I saw the Broadway touring company production of Dirty Dancing and, for the second time this week, I was pleasantly surprised by my reaction to it.  I am not a big fan of turning popular movies into stage musicals but this production was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it.  In my opinion Dirty Dancing is not really a traditional musical because it is more like watching the 1987 movie performed live on stage.  It follows the movie very closely, almost scene for scene, and includes many of the songs from the early 1960s that are included in the movie, such as "This Magic Moment," "Do You Love Me?," "Love Is Strange," "In the Still of the Night," and "You Don't Own Me," most of which are performed by ensemble cast members rather than the leads.  What makes this show so much fun to watch are the dance numbers.  It is the summer of 1963 and Baby Houseman (Bronwyn Reed) and her family have come to Kellerman's Resort for a vacation.  She meets Johnny (Christopher Tierney) and Penny (Jennifer Mealani Jones), two of the dance instructors at the resort, and tries to help out when Penny gets in trouble.  The scenes where the dancers perform for the guests are quite thrilling and I was especially impressed by Jones.  The scenes where Johnny tries to teach Baby the routine so she can stand in for Penny to keep their jobs at another resort are hilarious.  I especially loved how they staged the scenes of them practicing the lift in the water.  That elicited much laughter from the audience.  The final scene where Baby and Johnny dance to "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" was definitely a crowd-pleaser and the audience cheered when Johnny said, "No one puts Baby in a corner."  They also cheered when they did the lift!  Reed is so endearing as Baby and, as I mentioned, I loved her awkward attempts to dance at the beginning (I think it must be even more difficult to dance incorrectly than to get the steps right).  Tierney is a great dancer who is extremely charismatic as Johnny and it is easy to see why Baby is drawn to him (very easy on the eyes!).  I found this show to be wildly entertaining and, if you are a fan of the movie, you will definitely enjoy this production.  It continues at the Eccles Theatre until June 25 (tickets may be purchased here).

Note:  This musical might not be appropriate for young audience members.  The dancing is very sensual and one of the main characters has an abortion.  The woman sitting next to me left with her three young daughters at intermission.

Summer Reading: The Nest

The next selection on my summer reading list was The Nest, the debut novel by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney. Four adult siblings have been looking forward to inheriting a large sum of money, nicknamed "The Nest," set aside by their father to be dispersed when the youngest sibling turns 40, which will be soon. However, Leo, the eldest, is involved in a devastating car crash involving a Porsche, cocaine, and a young woman (not his wife) who is severely injured. His mother depletes "The Nest" to cover expenses and to pay off the young woman to avoid a scandal.  This sends the other siblings, Jack, Beatrice, and Melody, into a tailspin because they are in financial difficulties and have been counting on receiving their inheritance to bail them out. I found all of these characters to be self-absorbed, selfish, and unlikable and they spend the entire novel whining about losing some unearned and undeserved money. By the end of the novel I didn't even care about what happened to any of them but I was infuriated that Leo seemed to get away with it without any consequences. Even though the three younger siblings deal with the loss of their inheritance, there is absolutely no character development from the beginning of the novel to the end. I was actually more interested in some of the minor characters (there are a lot of them) but the resolution of their stories seemed very rushed to me. I think the story is very mediocre and, as I mentioned, I lost interest very quickly. Like other novels which seem to be lauded by the critics, I wonder if I've read the same thing.

Have you read The Nest?  What did you think?

Cars 3

I have to admit that I am not a big fan of the Cars franchise and I definitely did not expect to love Cars 3, Pixar's latest installment, but I did.  I loved the story of redemption and the character of Cruz Ramirez (Cristela Alonzo) really resonated with me.  Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) continues racing on the Piston Cup circuit when a younger and more technologically advanced car named Jackson Storm (Armie Hammer) emerges on the scene and begins beating him.  In the final race of the season, Lightening tries to overtake Storm but he loses control and is involved in a devastating crash.  Many think his career is over and it is even suggested that he start endorsing products for his sponsor, Rust-eze.  But Lightning doesn't want to give up.  He is assigned a trainer, the aforementioned Cruz Ramirez, and uses a state of the art facility to get back in racing form.  When this doesn't help him get any faster, Lightening, along with Cruz, goes back to his roots and seeks out Smokey (Chris Cooper), who mentored Doc Hudson (Paul Newman), for some unconventional training.  I will not give away the ending of Lightning's race but I will say that it is brilliant.  I was not expecting the outcome and it literally had everyone in my screening cheering out loud!  The theme of youth vs. experience, while not especially original, is very well developed and I really loved the message that it is never too late to pursue your dreams.  Cruz is a wonderful role model for girls and I found myself willing to suspend my disbelief in not only an anthropomorphic car world (in a way I couldn't in the first two movies) but also one with gender stereotypes that need to be overcome.  Finally, I loved the dazzling animation, especially during the Piston Cup races.  I'm not often surprised by my response to a movie, but in this case, I was pleasantly surprised.  I enjoyed it and I recommend it!

La Boheme in San Francisco

The main reason I wanted to go to San Francisco was so that I could see La Boheme, one of my very favorite operas, performed by one of the best opera companies in the world.  It has been on my bucket list for a long time and I've been looking forward to it for weeks.  It was a magnificent production!  I really enjoyed the performances and the doomed love story was very affecting.  Marcello (Audin Iverson), a painter, and Rodolfo (Arturo Chacon-Cruz), a poet, are penniless and live a hand-to-mouth existence in a Parisian garret.  One evening their neighbor Mimi (Erika Grimaldi) knocks on the door looking for a light for her candle.  She faints from breathlessness (she is suffering from consumption) and Rodolfo catches her in his arms. They soon fall madly in love.  Marcello, Rodolfo, and Mimi meet friends at Cafe Momus in the Latin Quarter on Christmas Eve.  Marcello sees an old lover, Musetta (Ellie Dehn), with her new suitor Alcindoro (Dale Travis), a rich old man, and she tries desperately to get Marcello's attention.  Musetta eventually leaves with Marcello, leaving the bill for Alcindoro!  After a few months, Marcello is jealous of Musetta's flirtation with other men and Rodolfo is guilty because he feels he is endangering Mimi's life with his poverty so the couples separate.  Later Musetta brings a dying Mimi to the garret because she is desperate to see Rodolfo.  Marcello, Musetta, and their friends go for the doctor but Mimi eventually dies in Rodolfo's arms.  What could be more romantic?  I loved every one of the actors who all sing their roles beautifully.  I had tears in my eyes after almost every duet and aria (except when I was laughing).  I loved the staging, especially the scene where Musetta is flirting with Marcello as she is having dinner with Alcindoro at the same time.  The costumes and scenery were all amazing.  The Cafe Momus was a lot of fun with hanging lights and I loved Musetta's pink dresses, especially against the dark tones of the rest of the costumes.  By the end of the opera I was completely overcome and the gentleman sitting next to me leaned over and said, "It was good, wasn't it?"  Yes, it was!  I am so glad I had the opportunity to see such a wonderful production!

24 Hours in San Francisco

Last week I took a really quick trip to San Francisco to see the opera La Boheme and it was so much fun.  I had a JetBlue credit that was going to expire and I decided on San Francisco because I've always wanted to see a production of the San Francisco Opera, which is considered to be one of the top opera companies in the world.  Even though I only had literally 24 hours hours in the city, I got to see a bit.  When I have a short time in a city I've never been to before, I like to take a hop on/hop off bus to see as much of the city as I can.

I got on the bus at Alamo Square and had a great view of the Painted Ladies, the beautiful Victorian houses that line the street.

Haight Ashbury.  This year is the 50th Anniversary of the Summer of Love!

The iconic Golden Gate Bridge.  Everyone kept telling me that this was the perfect time to visit San Francisco because it was so clear.  Usually the city is shrouded in fog and it is rare to get such a good view of the bridge.

Views of the bridge as we drove across it.

Chinatown.

Coit Tower in the background.

Fisherman's Wharf was a great place to get off the bus and wander around.

The Hard Rock Cafe at Pier 39.  I started the tradition of collecting a pin from the Hard Rock Cafe in any city that I visit.  I have hundreds of them.

The Transamerica Pyramid.

Union Square.

City Hall.  Thursday night it was lit up in blue and yellow to celebrate the Golden State Warriors winning the NBA Championship.

My hotel was in the Civic Center near the opera house.  There were lots of great places to eat there and then I attended a magnificent performance of La Boheme (more about that).  I left San Francisco the next morning and, even though it was a quick trip, I really enjoyed it!

Summer Reading: My Name is Lucy Barton

The next selection on my summer reading list was My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout. My former book club read Strout's The Burgess Boys and I thought it was fascinating. This novel is very nonlinear beginning with Lucy Barton's extended stay in the hospital for an unexplained illness with flashbacks to her difficult childhood and glimpses of her future as a successful novelist. For five days during her hospital stay her estranged mother comes to visit and, through trivial conversations about the people back home, the two of them reconnect. There are vague references to the debilitating poverty suffered by the family and hints about the abuse she suffered at the hands of her father and, while nothing is really resolved between Clara and her mother, Clara begins to come to terms with her past and it is assumed that she uses her experiences in her writing. While I was reading this short novel I kept wishing that more would happen (it is definitely more character driven than plot driven) but upon reflection I view it is a poignant masterpiece. Lucy is an incredibly sympathetic character and I found her descriptions of her childhood to be very affecting, especially when she describes staying at school to do her homework because it was warm. That really made me think about the students who linger in my classroom after school. Strout's writing is very understated but it really packs an emotional punch.  It took me a little while to wrap my head around this novel but once I did it really resonated with me.  I highly recommend it!

Have you read My Name is Lucy Barton?  What did you think?

A Day at the Clark Planetarium

Since Sean and I had to leave the zoo earlier than planned, we decided to visit Clark Planetarium which is probably Sean's favorite place.  We have been here many times before but there have been some renovations with some new exhibits added.  Sean was in heaven!  The really great thing about the planetarium is that all of the exhibits are free of charge.  There are Earth exhibits about water, wind, volcanoes, and earthquakes; moon exhibits including actual moon rocks, the phases of the moon, and lunar landings; and space exhibits about planets, black holes, and gravity.  Sean really likes playing with the tornado simulator, the gravity floor, and the lunar landing video game.  He could spend hours and hours here.  You can also buy tickets ($7.00) to see 3D movies about the Earth and space in the IMAX theater and star shows in the Dome theater.  While Sean and I were there we saw a show in the IMAX theater called "Amazon Adventure" which was absolutely fascinating.  Clark Planetarium is not just fun for kids.  I like visiting in the evening to see laser shows set to music.  You can go here to find out more information about all of the activities and shows at the planetarium.

Some Like It Hot

Sunday afternoon I got to see Some Like It Hot for the first time on the big screen and it was an absolute hoot!  Two musicians, Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon), go on the run after witnessing a mob hit in Chicago.  They disguise themselves as women, Josephine and Daphne, to join and all-female band engaged for six weeks at a hotel in Miami.  Once they get there, they face a new set of problems:  Joe falls for the vocalist in the band, Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe), and Jerry becomes the object of affection of millionaire Osgood Fielding III (Joe E. Brown).  Chaos ensues, especially when the mobsters they are running from show up in Miami for a convention.  This is a typical Billy Wilder farce with lots of physical comedy and sharp and witty dialogue.  All three lead actors give fabulous performances and I was especially impressed with Marilyn Monroe's comedic timing.  I laughed out loud so many times and my favorite scenes were when Jerry as Daphne wonders why men like her because she isn't pretty, when Joe impersonates Cary Grant the heir to Shell Oil in order to woo Sugar, when Sugar sings "I Want to Be Loved by You," when Jerry as Daphne tells Joe that she is engaged, and when Jerry as Daphne does the tango with Osgood.  It is just so funny watching Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon try to act like women!  Now I know why it is considered to be one of the best comedies of all time!  You have another chance to see this on the big screen June 14.  Go here for details.

My Cousin Rachel

Saturday night I met my friend Rachel to see My Cousin Rachel, the latest film adaptation of Daphne du Maurier's novel of the same name.  It is a psychological thriller which centers on Philip Ashley (Sam Claflin), an orphan who has been raised by his cousin Ambrose on a large estate in Cornwall.  After Ambrose dies mysteriously in Italy, his widow Rachel (Rachel Weisz) comes to visit the estate.  Philip blames Rachel for Ambrose's death because of some cryptic letters that Ambrose sent accusing Rachel of poisoning him but he eventually becomes completely infatuated with her.  Philip is impetuous and inexplicably gives away the estate to Rachel despite his earlier suspicions and the warnings of everyone around him.  Meanwhile, the special herbal tea that Rachel brews for Philip makes him tired and it seems obvious that she is poisoning him like she did Ambrose.  But did she poison Ambrose?  Is she poisoning Philip?  The audience is never entirely sure of Rachel's motivations which makes the film compelling right up to the ambiguous ending.  I was often infuriated by Philip as a character but Claflin does a good enough job at portraying his immaturity and naivete. Weisz, on the other hand, gives an absolutely brilliant performance as the enigmatic Rachel because she gives nothing away and always kept me guessing.  I love period dramas, especially ones based on Gothic novels, and this film definitely gets it right when it comes to mood.  The cinematography, production design, and costumes are beautiful!  I loved the sweeping shots of the Cornish coastline as well as the candle-lit scenes between Philip and Rachel.  This film is definitely not as intense or suspenseful as Rebecca, one of my favorite movies based on another du Maurier novel, but I really liked it and I recommend it.

A Day at the Natural History Museum of Utah

On Friday I was on aunt detail and I told Sean that we could do anything that he wanted.  He chose to visit the Natural History Museum of Utah on the campus of the University of Utah.  Sean absolutely loves this place and we ended up spending most of the day there.  The museum showcases the history, physical geography, plant life, and earliest peoples of Utah.  There are lots of fun interactive displays for kids and Sean and I enjoyed the Great Salt Lake exhibit and the earthquake exhibit.  Sean's structure withstood the earthquake much longer than mine did!  I absolutely loved the dinosaur displays.

I had never been to this museum before and I quite enjoyed it.  I think it is a great place for both adults and kids because the displays are very informative as well as vibrant and interactive.  I think Sean could have stayed for hours and hours.  Go here for more information about hours and admission prices.

Note:  Currently there is a special exhibit about the Vikings which Sean and I both really enjoyed.

Grand Teton National Park

My friend Rich teaches a class called the American West at Hunter High School.  During the summer, he takes a group of students from the class on a camping trip to Grand Teton National Park.  This year I went along as a chaperone.

I have been to Yellowstone many times but I have never camped at Grand Teton National Park and it was beautiful!

We stayed in the campsite by Coulter Bay in tents that were almost like cabins because they had reinforced walls and a roof.  They were pretty nice but it was very cold at night.  There was a wood-burning stove but we let the fire go out the first night.  I was vigilant about keeping the fire going the second night!  I was with the girls in this cabin.

On the second day we went rafting on the Snake River.  The level of the river was higher than anyone remembers it ever being and the guides were even nervous about the conditions.  They gave us a safety briefing that was comprehensive, to say the least.  After that I didn't know if I wanted to do it any more!  To be honest, I was pretty terrified.  I had gone river rafting once before on the Athabasca River in Canada but that was a bit tamer than the Snake River.  They made us wear wet suits because the water was so cold.

Here we are in our raft before we started down the river.  Notice that I am in the back in the middle.  Our guide wanted the two bravest people in the front as the lead paddlers and the most scared person in the back!  Ha ha!

Rafting the river was amazing!  We hit some really big rapids and we all got drenched but it was a thrill!  It felt like the biggest roller coaster you can imagine but it was completely out of control.  I loved it!  Our guide took this picture of us on a calm portion of the river!

On the third day we went on a hike around Jenny Lake which gave us spectacular views.

This was such a fun trip and the students were so great.  Some of my favorite moments were sitting in the bathroom charging our phones, making s'mores by the fire every night, an epic Monopoly game, and the Hootenanny in Moose.  I hope I am invited to go again next year! 

Summer Reading: Small Great Things

The next selection on my summer reading list was Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult. My former book club read My Sister's Keeper, House Rules, and Leaving Time, all of which I enjoyed to varying degrees. Jodi Picoult can always be relied upon for a thought-provoking read and this novel certainly delivered. Ruth Jefferson is a well-respected labor and delivery nurse with twenty years of experience. She is also African-American. She is assigned to assess Davis Bauer, the newborn son of Brittany and Turk Bauer, who happen to be white supremacists. They make a request that Ruth not be allowed to care for their son and a note is placed in his file. On a busy night with many deliveries and an emergency C-section, Ruth is the only nurse available to monitor Davis after a routine circumcision. When he goes into cardiac arrest, she tries to save him but, fearing for her job, immediately stops ministering to him when others arrive. When the baby dies, Turk and Brittany hold Ruth responsible and she is arrested and charged with murder. Kennedy McQuarrie is the overworked public defender who is assigned Ruth's case. It is her first murder trial and she hopes to win in order to advance her career. The narrative alternates between the perspectives of Ruth, Turk, and Kennedy and I found all of them to be compelling and believable, although Turk made me extremely uncomfortable. Of course, this novel explores the overt racism of the white supremacists which we would all agree is utterly reprehensible but Picoult also explores the subtle racism of Kennedy, a good person who asserts that she doesn't see race yet makes decisions about Ruth's case which silence her voice. This also made me very uncomfortable as I began questioning my own implicit bias. Some of the most powerful scenes in the novel are when Kennedy tries to experience what it is like to live inside Ruth's skin. While there are some aspects of the novel that I questioned, especially the transformation at the end which was not entirely believable, I highly recommend Small Great Things for bringing up important and timely questions about race.

Have you read Small Great Things?  What did you think?

The Godfather

I have a confession.  Before last Sunday I had never seen The Godfather!  I know!  When I mentioned this to my movie buddies there was a stunned silence as if they couldn't believe it!  It is widely considered to be the greatest film in American cinema so when I found out that it was going to be screened as part of TCM's Big Screen Classics, I knew I had to get a ticket if for no other reason than to be able to say that I had finally seen it.  Now I know what I have been missing.  It is a masterpiece!  The plot centers on the Corleone family, particularly the relationship between Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando), the head of the family, and his youngest son Michael (Al Pacino).  Initially, Michael is a disinterested outsider but is drawn in after Vito is gunned down by a rival and eventually becomes the ruthless leader of the family.  I found the story to be utterly compelling and my attention never wavered during its three hour run time.  I was very impressed by the performances of Marlon Brando (who won the Oscar for the role), James Caan as the oldest son Santini, Robert Duvall as the consigliere to the Corleone family, and Diane Keaton as Michael's girlfriend and, later, wife.  However, it was a young (and extremely handsome) Al Pacino who absolutely captivated me by his intense portrayal of a man who becomes more and more hardened by events.  The scene in the restaurant, with a close-up shot on Michael's face as he decides to kill two of the family's rivals, is brilliant.  You can literally see the exact moment when Michael makes the decision.  I also found the christening scene to be fascinating with another close-up on Michael's face as he recites vows in a church while his associates assassinate the leaders of all of the rival crime families.  The juxtaposition is so jarring but effective!  I think what I appreciated most about this film is that, even though it is about organized crime and there are scenes of violence (there is that famous scene with a horse's head), it is not excessively gory and there is very little profanity.  I loved the use of light and shadow to convey a mood and the score is also incredibly atmospheric.  At the end of the film everyone in the packed theater applauaded enthusiastically because it is a masterpiece!  I am so glad that I got to see it on the big screen.

Note:  I found it amusing that Sofia Coppola played the baby being christened!  I am so looking forward to her film The Beguiled.