Summer Reading: Orphan Train

Unlike the first two selections on my summer reading list, I could not put Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline down! It is a compelling story about a little known period of history and an unlikely friendship that really touched me. Kline seamlessly blends a story from the 1930s and a contemporary one with two alternating narrators: Molly is a seventeen year old orphan in a difficult foster placement who is given community service hours for stealing a book and Vivian Daly is a lonely 91-year-old woman living in a large house overflowing with painful memories. Molly is given the opportunity to complete her community service hours by helping Vivian clean and organize her attic. As the two of them interact, Molly learns Vivian's remarkable story about her life as an Irish immigrant and how, after losing her parents in a fire, she was placed on a train to the Midwest to be adopted by families in need of labor during the 1930s and their relationship begins to grow. They bond over their shared experiences as orphans (and the book Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery) and eventually help each other in surprising ways. I found both of these characters to be incredibly sympathetic. Molly is, initially, harder to like because she has built such a wall around herself to deal with the circumstances of her life but I understood her anger and appreciated her transformation even more. I found Vivian's story to be incredibly moving, even more so because it is a true depiction of what happened to over 200,000 orphans from 1854 to 1929. Vivian's bleak life after riding the orphan train brought tears to my eyes but this novel is ultimately very hopeful.  I read well into the night because I wanted to know what happened to these characters and, while I did feel that the ending was a bit rushed, I found it to be very satisfying. This is a memorable story that I highly recommend.

Note:  Have you read Orphan Train?  What did you think?

The Incredibles Double Feature

Last night I had the chance to see a double feature of The Incredibles, a favorite of mine, and the new movie Incredibles 2 on an IMAX screen!  It was so much fun!  I love the first movie so much but, incredibly, I've never seen it on the big screen before so this was such a treat.  I think it holds up really well and I loved the character of Edna as much as ever!  The new movie is everything that I hoped it would be!  It picks up exactly where The Incredibles left off with our family of superheroes facing the Underminer (John Ratzenberger).  They ultimately defeat him but leave a swathe of damage in their wake which, because superheroes are illegal, lands them in trouble.  Winston Deaver (Bob Odenkirk), the CEO of a telecommunications company, and his sister Evelyn (Catherine Keener) have a plan to reinstate the superheroes which involves Elastigirl (Holly Hunter).  She battles a new villain called Screenslaver (Bill Wise) while Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nielson) takes over at home.  Violet (Sarah Vowell) has boy troubles, Dash (Huck Milner) has math trouble, and Jack Jack (who steals the show) has trouble controlling his newfound powers (which prompts a hilarious visit to Edna for a new suit).  I really enjoyed this role reversal which provided a lot of comedic moments that made me laugh out loud.  I think this movie does a great job at developing the characters to their natural progression from the first movie and their arcs are interesting and compelling.  The family dynamic rings true and, in addition to providing lots of laughs, there are a few really poignant moments that give this movie a lot of heart.  The action is almost non-stop and it is so much fun!  The images are look so good on the screen and the animation is some of the best I've ever seen.  The story is a bit predictable with a plot twist that I saw coming early on but that did not in any way detract from my tremendous enjoyment of this movie.  I loved it and I highly recommend it for just about everyone!

Hamilton in Las Vegas

I absolutely loved the cast of Hamilton when the show made a stop in SLC a few months ago and, even though I had the opportunity to see it three times, I still wanted to see it again.  Luckily the same company is now in Las Vegas and I was able to get a ticket.  Before I left on my road trip from SLC to Las Vegas I learned that Joseph Morales, who plays Alexander Hamilton, would be out of the show all this week and I have to admit that I was a little bit disappointed because I loved his performance so much!  However, I really liked Julius Thomas III who played Hamilton last night.  His voice is really beautiful and I especially loved his renditions of "Dear Theodosia" and "Hurricane." I've started judging each each actor in the role by how he makes me feel in "It's Quiet Uptown" and his version was incredibly emotional!  Just about everyone sitting near me was crying!  The show also featured the understudies for King George (Conroe Brooks) and George Washington (Desmond Sean Ellington) and both of their performances were more traditional like the other casts I've seen.  I especially liked Ellington's performance of "One Last Time" because he basically turned the ensemble into a gospel choir complete with choreography.  Like the SLC production, I was blown away by Nik Walker as Aaron Burr, especially in "Wait For It."  I loved all of the humor he infused in "Non-Stop" and "The Room Where It Happens." In this production Kyle Scatliffe, as Thomas Jefferson, blew kisses to the audience in "Cabinet Battle #1," Fergie L. Philippe, as Hercules Mulligan, threw his flowers to the audience in "Satisfied," and Shoba Narayan, as Eliza Hamilton, threw in some wild hand gestures as she was beat boxing in "Take a Break."  All of this business was new to the show since I saw it in SLC and it makes me wonder if the company changes things up when they move on to a new city!   Because I've now seen this show seven times, I am able to notice different things because I'm so familiar with the main action and last night I was particularly struck by the choreography of the British soldiers in "Stay Alive" and by the choreography of "Washington on Your Side."  Every time I see it I also notice something completely new and last night I noticed that the lantern lights flicker when Angelica (Ta’Rea Campbell) sings about Benjamin Franklin’s key and kite in “Satisfied.”  This show is so brilliant!  The excitement in the audience was palpable and I loved it when they applauded after the dance break in "Yorktown."  I've never been in an audience that did that!  A lot of people ask me if it gets old after watching it so many times and I can honestly say that I was just as giddy walking into the Smith Center last night as when I walked into the Richard Rodgers Theatre to see it for the first time.  I love this show so much!

Mary Shelley

Since I teach the novel Frankenstein to my seniors every year I felt that Mary Shelley was required viewing.  Unfortunately, for being a biopic about such an interesting and unconventional woman, I found it to be rather boring and conventional.  Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (Elle Fanning) feels overshadowed by her famous parents, the feminist Mary Wollstonecraft who died shortly after she was born and the philosopher William Godwin (Stephen Dillane), and struggles to find her own literary voice.  Soon she meets the dashing poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (Douglas Booth) and, despite the fact that he has a wife and daughter, she decides to run away with him.  They live a tumultuous life together, plagued by creditors, Shelley's infidelity (possibly with her own step-sister Claire Claremont played by Bel Powley), and the death of her infant daughter.  She also feels overshadowed by Shelley's literary success.  Eventually the couple meets the poet Lord Byron (Tom Sturridge) and are invited to his mansion on Lake Geneva.  Byron issues the fateful challenge for everyone to write a ghost story to pass the time during a stormy evening.  Mary channels her feelings of loneliness and despair into the creation of Frankenstein's monster.  Once the novel is finished, she struggles to get it published because she is a woman.  She settles for having it published anonymously with a foreword written by Shelley, causing everyone to think that he wrote it.  These events are blandly portrayed as if the filmmakers were simply ticking boxes to get all of the biographical information included without taking any risks.  It is more like a made-for-TV movie than a theatrical release (how could they not mention her losing her virginity on her mother's grave?).  Furthermore, I found the narrative to be very disjointed.  Is she a feminist living an unconventional life or is she a victim of all the men around her?  Fanning gives an almost listless performance but even more maddening is the fact that there is very little chemistry between her and Booth.  In contrast, Sturridge and Powley are electrifying (pun intended) together and I was far more interested in them.  This was a little bit disappointing for me and I would recommend giving it a miss.

First Reformed

Last night my friend Angela and I went to see First Reformed and I can honestly say that this film left me completely shattered.  It is a brutal portrayal of a man in torment with an incredible performance by Ethan Hawke.  Reverend Toller (Hawke) is the head of the First Reformed church, which is more of a tourist stop rather than a thriving religious community.  It is administered by a megachurch called Abundant Life and its leader, Pastor Jeffers (Cedric the Entertainer), is concerned that the 250th anniversary celebration of First Reformed go off without a hitch.  He has reason to be concerned.  Toller is struggling physically (from a stomach ailment), emotionally (his son was killed in Iraq), and spiritually (he no longer feels that God listens to his prayers).  A pregnant parishioner named Mary (Amanda Seyfried) requests that he speak with her husband Michael (Philip Ettinger), a radical environmentalist, because he is distraught at the thought of bringing a child into a world facing the cataclysmic effects of climate change.  This encounter further challenges Toller's faith, especially when he discovers that a major contributor to Abundant Life owns a company known for environmental violations.  This film was deeply upsetting to me because it grapples with ideas of despair and hope (I really struggle with the darkness in the world right now and sometimes I lose hope) but the ambiguous ending can be interpreted as either damnation or salvation.  My friend and I had different reactions but I haven't been able to stop thinking about it and, for that reason, I believe it is one of the best films of the year.  It is not easy to watch but I recommend it.

Note:  Just give Ethan Hawke the Oscar right now.