Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

I was really excited for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania because I enjoyed Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp so much.  I went to see it last night but, unfortunately, I thought it was a mixed bag.  After the events of Avengers: Endgame, Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) builds a device that can make contact with the Quantum Realm but it accidentally opens a portal which transports her, Scott Lang/ Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), Hope van Dyne/ Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), and Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) there.  They discover a world filled with fantastical beings and creatures but they also discover a time-traveling multiversal being known as Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) who was exiled there and then betrayed by Janet.  Kang is now the ruthless dictator of the Quantum Realm and demands that Scott help him rebuild the multiversal power core that Janet destroyed.  This leads to an epic battle where the fate of both the Quantum Realm and the Multiverse hangs in the balance.  What I loved most about the first two movies in this trilogy is the lighthearted and goofy banter between Ant-Man and his crew so I was really disappointed to find that missing in this installment (where is Luis?).  Much of the humor in the interactions between Scott and the natives doesn't really land and, in my opinion, the characters Lord Krylar (Bill Murray) and M.O.D.O.K. (Corey Stoll) are pointless and ridiculous, respectively.  The emotional core of this movie is meant to come from the father-daughter relationship between Scott and Cassie (Hope is completely sidelined) but I just wasn't very invested in it because I didn't like Cassie as a character (I'm not sure if it is because of Newton's portrayal or my growing annoyance with the plucky-teenager-who-knows-better-than-everyone-else trope).  The CGI is both messy (it is obvious that everyone is acting in front of a green screen) and exhausting (I found my mind wandering during the never-ending climactic battle).  Having said all of that, I absolutely loved the character Kang and Majors' portrayal of him is brilliant because he is so menacing but also a bit vulnerable.  I found Kang's interactions with Janet (Pfeiffer is also outstanding) to be the most compelling aspect of this movie and I am actually looking forward to seeing more from him moving forward (definitely stay for the mid- and end-credits scenes).  I didn't hate this because it sets up one of the most interesting villains in the MCU but yikes!

The 39 Steps at the Grand Theatre

I was so excited to see a new production of The 39 Steps at the Grand Theatre last night because it is one of the funniest plays I have ever seen!  It is a hilarious spoof of the 1935 spy movie of the same name by Alfred Hitchcock and features many references to other movies by the director, including Psycho, Strangers on a Train, Rear Window, North By Northwest, and Vertigo.  There are only four actors performing all of the roles and the action is lightning fast with scene changes and costume changes happening right on stage.  Nicholas Dunn plays Richard Hannay, a man at loose ends who becomes embroiled in a plot to stop a ring of spies from stealing military secrets after a mysterious woman named Annabella Schmidt is stabbed to death in his apartment.  Mara Lefler plays Annabella and several other women who become romantically involved with Hannay when he travels to Scotland to clear his name.  Michelle Lynn Thompson and Max Huftalin play every other character, including actors, traveling salesmen, policemen, innkeepers, farmers, spies, and more.  All four actors have brilliant comedic timing and I especially enjoyed it when Thompson and Huftalin performed several different characters in the same scene simply by changing hats and accents!  I also really enjoyed the physicality of the performances, such as when Dunn and Lefler get stuck trying to climb over a turnstile and when the two of them try to get undressed for bed while handcuffed together.  The audience sits right on the stage so it is an intimate space that is perfect for this show.  The sets and props are very minimal with pieces that are moved and reconfigured to become various locations such as Hannay's flat in London, a music hall, a train, a bridge, the moors, a crofter's cottage, a manor house, a hotel, an assembly hall, a police car, and the London Palladium.  The lighting design is brilliant, especially a sequence where Hannay is being pursued by planes across the moor, during another chase sequence on a train, and when Hannay jumps off a bridge.  The costumes are a lot of fun and are used to great effect to distinguish between the different characters.  I laughed out loud during the entire show and I had a wonderful time.  It is a Backstage at the Grand production and runs Thursday-Saturday until March 11 (go here for tickets).  I highly recommend it!

The Writing Retreat

My February Book of the Month selection was The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz (the other options were Someone Else's Shoes by Jojo Moyes, River Sing Me Home by Eleanor Shearer, Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn, and Maame by Jessica George) and I liked it but I didn't love it. Alex has always wanted to be a writer so, when she is unexpectedly offered a spot at an exclusive writer's retreat at the estate of her favorite author Roza Vallo, she jumps at the opportunity. When she arrives at Blackbriar, however, Alex discovers that things are not what they seem.  Roza has assembled the five up-and-coming writers in order for them to compete against each other for a million dollar publishing deal, one of the other participants is Alex's former best friend with whom she has a complicated past, and the estate is remote and isolated (no Wi-Fi or cell service) with a mysterious history involving the occult. When one of the writers disappears, Alex wonders if the supernatural is involved or if one of the participants has sinister intentions. This psychological thriller is incredibly suspenseful and I couldn't put it down but there is a lot going on in this novel and not everything worked for me. I really enjoyed Alex as a character as well as the journey she takes in order to accept and then embrace her sexuality and to claim her power as a writer for the first time. I also really enjoyed the pacing of the novel because the tension builds and builds as information about each character is slowly revealed in order to subvert expectations. I didn't enjoy the supernatural element because it feels very forced, especially the novel-within-a-novel that Alex is writing as part of the competition (I found it very boring), and I feel that it is not necessary because the human intrigue and the locked-room mystery is compelling enough. Also, I didn't really care for all of the graphic sex scenes or the scenes involving drug use, which don't necessarily bother me per se, but I had a big problem with the lack of consent depicted. I would, ultimately, recommend this because of the intriguing premise and atmospheric setting (it has received lots of rave reviews) but I think there are a few elements that keep it from being great.

Titanic

It's been 25 years and I can still remember the excitement I felt seeing Titanic on the big screen on opening night!  It was the last day of school before Christmas break and, because you couldn't buy advance tickets back then, I went on my lunch break to get them for the first screening that night (which was almost sold out).  I had to stand in a really long line and I was almost late getting back to school (kids today will never know what we went through to get tickets back in the day).  I went to see it with my whole family and I was mesmerized by the love story between Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) and Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio) as well as the amazing special effects used to depict the sinking of the RMS Titanic.  This was the first movie that I remember feeling really hyped about (the only other movies that I remember standing in line for are The Phantom Menace in 1999 and Spider-Man in 2002) and it was the first movie that seemed like a larger-than-life spectacle that everyone was talking about.  It was also the first movie that I saw multiple times in the theater (I had a lot of time to see it because it was released during Christmas break).  I loved this movie so much that I bought the VHS tapes (it was in two parts) and watched it over and over again.  When I heard that it was going to be re-released in theaters to commemorate its 25th anniversary I knew that I had to see it on the big screen again.  I went with both of my sisters last night and it was just as amazing as I remember it!  Once again, I was so impressed with the special effects (I think they hold up really well), especially when the ship splits in half and then finally submerges.  Even though I know almost everything there is to know about the sinking of the RMS Titanic (I was really obsessed with it for a while and read multiple books on the subject), I still found the final act to be so suspenseful because the tension builds and builds as the water slowly fills the ship (I found myself holding my breath several times).  There are so many indelible scenes (the old couple laying in bed as the water starts to fill their stateroom) and iconic lines ("Titanic was called the ship of dreams.  And it was.  It really was.") and I eagerly awaited every one.  I especially loved all of the transitions from the wreck on the bottom of the ocean to the ship in all of its grandeur.  Both Winslet and DiCaprio are phenomenal (not surprisingly, they both became superstars after this movie) but I was also really impressed with Kathy Bates as Molly Brown and by Billy Zane as Cal Hockley.  Finally, I forgot how much I love the score by James Horner, especially "Hymn to the Sea" and "Rose" because these themes feature haunting vocals by Sissel.  It was almost overwhelming to experience this again and I definitely recommend seeing it while it is back in theaters, especially if you have not seen it on the big screen before!

Ballet West's The Sleeping Beauty

I love being a Ballet West season subscriber but one of the disadvantages is that you can't choose individual performances based on casting so I don't often get to see my favorite ballerina, Katlyn Addison, in a principal role.  So I was absolutely thrilled when I discovered that she would be dancing the role of Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty last night!  This ballet is so beautiful and I thoroughly enjoyed Addison's performance (and the entire production).  In the Prologue the King (Zachary Brickson) and Queen (Michele Gifford) invite all of the Fairies of the land to the christening of their daughter, the Princess Aurora.  The Fairies bestow gifts of Kindness, Joy, Beauty, and Temperament in dances featuring fun and energetic choreography.  Carabosse (Emily Adams), angry that she wasn't invited to the christening, casts a spell on Aurora saying that she will prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and die then she flies off the stage dramatically with her minions.  However, the Lilac Fairy (Anisa Sinteral) has not yet bestowed her gift of Wisdom and changes the curse so Aurora will fall into a deep sleep instead and be awakened by the kiss of true love.  In Act I Princess Aurora (Addison) is celebrating her sixteenth birthday and a group of peasants come together in dances of joy (I loved the use of large flower garlands and the instantly recognizable music by Tchaikovsky in these dances).  Four princes vie for Aurora's hand in marriage in a dance with beautiful classical choreography (Addison is absolutely brilliant) and music featuring themes by a solo cello.  An old crone offers her a gift but she turns out to be Carabosse in disguise and the gift is a spindle which pricks Aurora's finger.  She vanishes from the stage (with some spectacular pyrotechnics) but the Lilac Fairy enchants the castle so Aurora and the entire court fall into a deep sleep.  In Act II Prince Desire (Adrian Fry) is leading a hunting party but soon grows bored and is lured away by the Lilac Fairy.  She shows him a vision of Princess Aurora and he becomes enthralled by her (in an incredibly romantic Pas de Deux).  The Lilac Fairy takes him to the enchanted castle where he banishes Carabosse (with more special effects) and awakens Aurora with a kiss.  Act III features the wedding of Prince Desire and Princess Aurora with dances of tribute from fairy tale characters (in spectacular costumes) culminating in a lovely Grand Pas de Deux.  In addition to the amazing choreography, performances, music, and costumes, this ballet also features new and opulent sets by Alain Vaes (the woods used in Act II are especially atmospheric).  I loved this ballet and I would definitely recommend getting a ticket (go here) for a spellbinding night out.