Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation

I absolutely love the Mission: Impossible franchise!  Friday night I was able to see the fifth installment, Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, and it is fantastic!  I loved everything about it!  CIA Director Hunley (Alec Baldwin) disbands the IMF just when agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is convinced he can prove the existence of the Syndicate, a sinister criminal organization led by a disavowed MI6 agent who has gone rogue named Solomon Lane (Sean Harris).  In Lane, Hunt has definitely met his match but he is aided by Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), an MI6 agent who has infiltrated the Syndicate but her loyalties are often suspect.  Eventually the other IMF agents, Benji (Simon Pegg), Brandt (Jeremy Renner), and Luther (Ving Rhames), secretly come to Hunt's aid but he is always one step behind Lane until it comes down to a final confrontation between two worthy adversaries.  The action sequences in this movie are amazing!  Hunt must foil an assassination attempt during a performance of Turandot at the Vienna Opera House and the fight on the lights above the stage is unbelievable.  The juxtaposition of the music with the action definitely heightens the tension and I loved these scenes because Turandot is one of my favorite operas.  There is also an epic motorcycle chase through the streets of Casablanca and then the Atlas Mountains.  I was on the edge of my seat!  There are a few twists and turns, especially involving the British Prime Minister (Tom Hollander, who played Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice), the Director of MI6 (Simon McBurney), and CIA Director Hunley, so you are never quite sure what is going to happen next. The final resolution between Hunt and Lane is so absolutely perfect that I actually cheered out loud (I wasn't alone).  I loved watching all of the actors having fun with their characters, especially Pegg as Benji, and Ferguson is totally badass!  If you are a fan of Mission: Impossible, I think this may be the best movie in the franchise and I highly recommend it!

Note:  Tom Cruise is not my favorite actor (I think he's kind of a weirdo) but you've got to give the dude credit for all of the awesome stunts he does.  Dangling from Dead Horse Point and scaling the Burj Khalifa are amazing but hanging on to a moving airplane?  Mind blown!

The Book of Mormon

Thursday night I had the opportunity to see the musical The Book of Mormon.  I have wanted to see it for a long time and it certainly didn't disappoint.  It is the funniest show I have ever seen!  Two Mormon missionaries, Elder Price (Billy Harrigan Tighe) and Elder Cunningham (A.J. Holmes), are sent to a remote village in northern Uganda to convert the natives to the church.  However, the natives are much more concerned about famine, poverty, AIDS, and a violent overlord than in hearing their message.  The devout Elder Price is discouraged and wishes that he had been called on a mission to Orlando but Elder Cunningham, who has never read the Book Of Mormon "because it is just so boring," starts embellishing the message with references to Star Wars, Star Trek, and Lord of the Rings to make it relevant to their lives.  He begins to convert the natives after he baptizes Nabulungi (Alexandra Ncube), the chief's daughter who dreams of a better life in Salt Lake City.  The elders eventually get in trouble for their false teachings but they realize that they have made the lives of the natives better and eventually convert the overlord.  The musical numbers and choreography are absolutely incredible and I especially loved the songs "You and Me (But Mostly Me)," "Turn It Off," "Man Up," "Baptize Me," and "I Am Africa."  The crowd cheered during the song "Sal Tlay Ka Siti."  In fact, the crowd laughed and cheered throughout the entire show because many of the lines are just hilarious!  I was laughing so hard that I had tears coming out of my eyes.  The line that got the biggest laugh is when one of the villagers tells Nabulungi that Salt Lake City isn't a real place because it's just a metaphor!  There is a lot of swearing in this show and many people might be offended by the subject matter, but if you understand going in that it is a satire, you will have a really fun night out.  The Book of Mormon is sold out for its entire run at Capitol Theatre but you can line up 2 1/2 hours before the show each night to be entered into a lottery for 20 available tickets.  It's worth the effort!

Note:  I have never seen a more enthusiastic crowd for a show in SLC, Wicked and Lion King included.  The energy in the crowd was palpable and it made watching the show so much fun!

Go Set a Watchman

In July my book club chose to read Harper Lee's long-awaited second novel Go Set a Watchman.  I have never been more nervous or excited to read a book in my life!  This novel takes place in the fictional town of Maycomb, Georgia twenty years after the events portrayed in To Kill A Mockingbird so, in many regards, it might be considered a sequel. However, it was submitted for publication before To Kill A Mockingbird so it could just as easily be a prequel, especially in light of the fact that Harper Lee used it as a jumping off point to write the beloved classic.  Twenty-six year old Jean Louise (as she is now known) returns to Maycomb to care for her ailing father.  After living in New York for a number of years, she finds Maycomb to be small and provincial and she is horrified to learn of her father's views on integration. Jean Louise still views Maycomb and her father through the rose-colored filter of her childhood and she struggles with the reality she finds.  I personally really loved the story. The character of Jean Louise is everything that I wanted her to be as an adult (still as sassy as ever) and I was quite moved by her relationship with her father and how it evolved. She discovers that the man who has been her moral compass her whole life is flawed and it is Atticus himself who teaches her that she can and should disagree with him.  Much has been made of the fact that Go Set a Watchman portrays Atticus as a racist.  Like Jean Louise, many To Kill a Mockingbird readers view him as an absolute and they, like Jean Louise, struggle with the fact that he is fallible.  This story did not in any way diminish Atticus in my eyes; if anything, it made him a more complex and interesting character. Atticus is, after all, human and his opinions gave me a lot of insight about that particular time and place in history and how otherwise good people could have thought and acted as they did. I do not believe that this novel is an equal to To Kill a Mockingbird nor do I believe that it should be considered a classic.  It is an early draft and it definitely reads like one (although there are some beautifully written sections).  However, I am glad that I read it for the poignant reminder that you can disagree with someone and still love and respect them.

Lady Antebellum at USANA

I'm not a big fan of country music.  I tend to like artists who have more of a cross-over pop sound like Taylor Swift and Shania Twain (more about them later this summer).  I added Lady Antebellum to that list when I saw their Own the Night tour several years ago.  Despite the fact that I am not really familiar with their music (in fact, there are only a handful of songs that I actually know), I decided to see them at the Usana Amphitheatre last night because I knew they would put on a good show and there really is nothing better than listening to music outside on a warm summer night!  As predicted, they did, in fact, put on a great show and I really enjoyed it!  I only recognized four songs but I sang my heart out on "Just a Kiss," "I Run to You," "Need You Now," and "We Owned the Night."  They played quite a few covers, including Bruce Hornsby's "Mandolin Rain" with Charles Kelley's brother Josh and Hunter Hayes (who was an opening act to the delight of the screaming girls around me) on mandolin, Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" with Sam Hunt (another opening act who was quite good), Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud," and Shania Twain's "Any Man of Mine."  I would say that "Thinking Out Loud" was definitely a highlight for me but I feel like Lady Antebellum has a big enough back catalog that they could have played more of their own songs rather than covers.  There were actually some songs that I knew that they didn't play ("Wanted You More" and "When You Were Mine") and, if I know the song, it must be pretty popular.  I did like the songs from their new album 747, "Long Stretch of Love," "Bartender," "One Great Mystery," and "747,"  so I might have to give it a proper listen.  Even though I didn't sing every word to every song like the night before, it was a great summer concert under the stars!

Note:  Have I ever mentioned that getting out of the parking lot at Usana is a complete nightmare?  I literally sat in my car for over 30 minutes without moving.  For the next concert I may have to bring provisions...

Imagine Dragons at Energy Solutions Arena

I love the band Imagine Dragons!  Their album Night Visions was practically the soundtrack to my life during a period of time when I was particularly happy and, even now, when I listen to those songs I am reminded of some great memories.  Despite the fact that the band literally got their start playing clubs in Provo and SLC, I have never seen them live before last night's concert at the ESA and I have really been looking forward to it.  All I can say is that Imagine Dragons certainly put on a great show and they sound pretty impressive live (even in the ESA where the sound is sometimes less than ideal).  Dan Reynolds is incredibly charismatic and gave many heartfelt speeches thanking the people of Utah for supporting the band in their early days.  They began with "Shots," which is my favorite song from their latest album, Smoke + Mirrors.  They continued with "Trouble" and then dedicated an incredible performance of "It's Time" to Tyler Robinson, a young man from SLC who had a rare form of cancer for whom the band created the Tyler Robinson Foundation.  Next they performed a fabulous cover of Alphaville's song "Forever Young" which led into "Smoke and Mirrors."   They got the ESA rocking (not for the last time) with "Poloroid,""I'm So Sorry," and "Summer."  I loved the acoustic intro to "Gold" (which is another favorite from the new album) and I really loved the medley of "Amsterdam/Tiptoe/Bleeding Out/Release."  Reynolds really showcased his vocal range during that section of the show.  Next, they played "Demons" and I had goosebumps when Reynolds had the crowd sing the lyric, "Unless you show me how."  It was definitely an amazing moment.  They finished the set with "Hopeless Opus," "On Top of the World," "Friction," "I Bet My Life," and a mind-blowing version of "Radioactive" complete with lasers.  For the encore they played "The Fall."  This was such a great concert and I will definitely see them any time they pass through SLC!

Note:  I always have my sophomores write a research paper and give an oral presentation on a famous person of their choice.  Since students hate writing research papers, I figure they will be more inclined to complete the assignment if they can write about someone they are already interested in.  Last spring one of my students chose Dan Reynolds.  After her oral presentation I asked her if she was going to this concert.  She told me no and then literally started crying when I told her I was!