"Booksmart"

This sleeper hit from last summer was one of those films which came and went but was part of a mental list to see if I had the chance.  Sitting at home on day 12 of the shutdown -- I had the chance.  Somewhat less deep than I expected I came around to liking it but wasn't a fan from the outset.  Of the two female leads, Beanie Feldstein's dominant character Molly is immediately unlikeable.  She isn't just an unpopular nerd, she is an elitist who looks down on almost everyone around her.  The film isn't just a coming-of-age tale.  For Molly this is a "wake up and smell the roses" tale.  It was that angle, and the path of fellow traveler Amy (Kaitlyn Dever's character) which finally had me buy into this understandably awkward story.  Most of the film takes place in a 24 hour period -- from the last day of school to graduation.  It's a good call.  That 24 hour period is often one of the most powerful and unforgettable times in the life of young people, much like the moments when baby birds are ejected from the safety of their nests.  While I didn't love the "Bridesmaids" level gross-out humor the script is solid and provides a good number of laughs.  Directed by Olivia Wilde there is also a decent awareness of how girls think.  Always nice to see a woman director when it comes to female lives.  Worth a look but a tad lighter and sillier than you might think.

"The Farewell"

Recommended by a friend this quiet little film was a first pick to while away some time during our city's virus lockdown.  It did not disappoint.  With a mostly Chinese cast and Awkwafina in a subdued role it was a touching look at illness and aging through the lens of a very different culture.  In this case, the story is based on a true tale of a beloved grandmother who is not told of her cancer diagnosis.  This is typical practice in places like China where the quality of life is often valued over quantity.  Awkwafina plays the American granddaughter who insists on being there for her grandmother even though the family feels she will not be able to keep the secret.  There are funny moments, sad moments, real moments.  It was the kind of thing which has a universality to it and the story worms its way into your heart.  My friend wondered why it wasn't nominated for some awards.  With excellent cinematography, acting and writing, I wonder the same thing.  Watched the final scenes with both a smile and a tissue.  Bet you will do the same.

Darwin

Hoping to head to the Galapagos, but failing (thanks, Covid-19) I read two books on Darwin.  There was Charles Darwin (part of the "Giants of Science" series) by Kathleen Krull, and Darwin's Ghosts:  The Secret History of Evolution by Rebecca Stott.  Both books were written for the educational market and both revealed much that I didn't know.  Both had strong but very structured writing, books of this type being held to strong standards on their length and number of chapters.

The first one, by Ms. Krull, was a little bit more "upbeat" than I cared for, glossing over the darker parts of Mr. Darwin's life, but did a good job of looking at the facts of his work rather than the hype.  Ms. Krull did a nice job of showing what Darwin actually researched and how that informed his changing view of biology.  The most amusing quote in the entire book was "The most hardened resistance to Darwin's theory is in the United States, where scientific literacy lags behind that of other industrialized nations."  Given the politicizing of our Coronavirus-gripped country as I write this, the quote struck me as humorous, sad, and insightful.

Darwin's Ghosts was somewhat more intriguing as it looked at all who had come before.  Ms. Stott gets major kudos here for her research which found figures and theories not listed on your general Google search.  Starting hundreds of years in the past it was impressive to realize what random men, often without education, were able to surmise about the origins of our world long before Darwin climbed aboard the Beagle.  It showed how theories can mirror each other despite being separated by time and distance, pushing the idea that truth will surface regardless of our means to fully interpret it.  Ms. Stott also does a good job of showing how politics and religion suppressed scientific discovery for thousands of years.  She manages to do this without becoming preachy.  I enjoyed the book a good deal and only had minor quibbles about the inclusion of Leonardo da Vinci, which seemed a tad crowbarred in (part of his chapter was shared with a potter who made discoveries independently).  There was also the issue of chapter length which seemed mandated.  To make the chapters "equal" some figures were described with a detailed personal history, others had long tracts of their works reprinted.  The book may have been better had the author just been given the freedom to write about each person to the extent that there was information available.  That being said, I liked that Ms. Stott left me with several philosophical questions to ponder, including the idea that maybe universal truths only come to light when a society is ready to hear them.

More Airplane Movies

Yes, I had a lot of travel set for this Spring.  "Had" being the operative word (thanks, Covid-19).  I digress.  Watched "Blinded by the Light", "Paper Towns", "Overcomer" and "Diciembres".  The good/bad news is that I have seen so many airplane films at this point that I have fewer and fewer choices.  It means watching films I might have otherwise skipped.

"Blinded by the Light".  Star Viveik Kalra and the entire cast create indelible characters which you can't help but be drawn to.  Clever filmmaking adds just a teensy dash of magical realism to echo the idea that this is sorta-kinda a musical ... but not.  It is actually a massive homage to Bruce Springsteen.  Massive.  I've never been a huge fan of his but the film, about Pakistani teens in England in the 1980s, gave me a decent insight as to his popularity.  While I didn't become a convert, I got it.  My only complaint was a wrap-up which was a tad too neat.  Long-standing family issues seemed to be overcome with a smile and a hug and I just don't feel life works that way.  Also, the focus on Springsteen sometimes blurred over the actions and desires of Kalra's character, leaving one wondering what his future held.  That being said, very worthy for an airplane ride.

"Paper Towns".  I broke a cardinal rule here and watched this without having read the book.  I did, however, read "Looking for Alaska" and couldn't help but think the enormously popular John Green was a bit of a one-trick pony.  Both stories are about sexually/socially mature teen girls who upend the life of a quiet boy and then disappear.  "Paper Towns" is less bleak than "Looking for Alaska" and the film says something about the value of taking life by the horns.  The story also excels where Green excels -- at being realistic.  The end is not what you would expect but it isn't made into something fanciful, either.  Solid tale with good acting (and writing, of course).

"Overcomer".  This one was a surprise.  In the spirit of old-time flights, there was only one feed for the whole plane, kind of a "watch it or read" situation.  One of the flight crew apparently picked it.  The tale of a high school basketball coach forced to take on the track and field team of one, a girl with asthma, is a cloak for Christian messaging.  Having never really watched a Christian film before, it was both better and worse than expected.  Acting, writing, production quality -- all were pretty good.  I didn't mind the messaging to the young runner that she was loved and important.  These are things we should be saying to every kid, regardless of religion.  For the most part the heavy-handedness was avoided as the lead character was struggling with his own faith, a message I could relate to.  That ended in the last chunk of the film when the Christian messaging took over the storyline and the "morals of the story" were, IMHO, somewhat mixed.  On one hand, there was the idea that you accept Jesus into your heart with no expectation of reward, that the love between you and the divine is enough.  On the other hand, there is the message that those who are Christians will naturally beat the competition and "win" in all things.  I found this to be a bit of conflict.  If you want me buying into this, I need to believe that faith is the reward in and off itself, regardless of payoff.

"Diciembres".  This mostly Spanish language film is gut-wrenching, telling the story of the U.S. invasion of Panama through multiple voices.  Something which went nearly unreported in the American press, and was twisted by a massive propaganda machine when it was reported on, left most of the people in this country thinking it was just a "simple police action."  It was anything but.  Hundreds, maybe thousands, of Panamanian nationals, civilians, were killed by the U.S. military, who "disappeared" the bodies so that no record was made of the slaughter.  In one of our many ill-advised coup attempts in a foreign country, our soldiers went in and carpet-bombed an entire neighborhood, marching through the area and shooting everyone in their path, including locals who wanted the U.S. out.  The film is told during the events of the invasion and ten years later.  It is a story of healing and struggle.  Emotional wounds run deep for La Mujer and her son (characters are named for archetypes, showing them as symbolic of the people of Panama as a whole.)  Estranged from the mother-in-law they live across from, each of the three seem entrenched in anger and sadness.  Not a story for the queasy, the film opens with a brutal attack and the loss of a beloved pet.  Narrated by "El Hombre" there is a sense of what was lost, and the vacuum he created with his death.  It's a smart, pointed, powerful film and should be required for any student skimming through 20th Century history.  We need to take responsibility for our actions as a country.  Films like this are important as they call us out to the human toll of U.S. imperialism.

Airplane Movies

More travel means catching up with more films I have missed.  Best of the bunch was "Up" which really struck me on a million levels.  It's sad, funny, and more real than most cartoon movies I've seen.  It's got a lot of contemporary themes but mostly just strikes you as being extremely human.  Characters are flawed and the total thing is just massively memorable.  It resonated with me long after watching it.

On the other end of the spectrum was "Music and Lyrics", a Drew Barrymore film so forgettable I actually don't remember much about it, other than silly vapid entertainment which kept me entertained on the long ride.

Somewhere in the middle was "The Sun is Also a Star".  Based on a book I loved this is a somewhat faithful rendition of the story in film with well-cast actors but it lacked energy somehow.  It was nice to see the words come to life but I would have liked a little more spark.

There were two other movies I literally forgot ("Best in Show" and "Joy") ... what does that say for airplane films?