Doorway, NE Weidler St.

Another one of those disjointed airport days, hubby is en route to the UK again.  I was looking at the calendar and since September, between his travel and mine, we have been apart for 10 weeks.  There are two more trips (that we know about) to get through in February and then hopefully we can catch a break.  

Chilly, dry, and some sunshine today.

Ok, I haven’t done any movie/series reviews in weeks, I've been meaning to but with one thing and another... anyway, I’ve been keeping a running list so I wouldn’t forget, so here goes:

Mr. Holmes (2015), Ian McKellan, Laura Linney.  Sherlock Holmes in retirement in the countryside keeping bees. His memory failing he tries to solve the mystery that eluded him before he retreated to the country.  It was a quiet movie, lots of lovely details and Ian McKellan is always great to watch.  

A Single Man (2009), Colin Firth, Julianne Moore.  Based on the book of the same title by Christopher Isherwood.  Set in the 1960s, a college professor grief-stricken after the death of his lover, the movie follows him through a single day as he puts his affairs in order.  It was directed by fashion designer Tom Ford, lots of fabulous clothes and interiors.  Colin Firth was excellent.

The Duke of Burgundy (2014), Sidse Babett Knudsen, Chiara D’Anna.  A film with an entirely female cast.  The story at the outset appears to be based on the ill-treatment of a housemaid by her employer but actually turns out to be something quite different altogether and is about the relationship between the two women and this highly choreographed ritual.  Very atmospheric, beautiful costumes, definitely not run of the mill.  I liked it and some of it is quite funny.  I kept trying to figure out where I’d seen one of the main characters before I finally figured out she was the lead from the Danish series Borgen.  

Twinsters (2015) documentary.  Identical twin sisters who were separated at birth in Korea and adopted by different families, one in the US and one in France. Neither sister or adopted family knew they were twins. They reunite thanks to magic of the internet! A very sweet and charming documentary.

People Places Things (2015), Jemaine Clement, Regina Hall, Jessica Williams. A funny and sweet comedy about a newly single father juggling life and parenthood.

The Matchmaker (2010), Adir Miller, Maya Dagan, Tuval Shafir.  A bitter-sweet coming of age movie set in Haifa during the summer of 1968.  A young man goes to work for a matchmaker who has survived the holocaust.  There’s a lot going on in this movie, an undercurrent of hopes and fears.  

Force Majeure (2014), Johannes Kuhnke, Lisa Loven Kongsli.  The story of a ‘perfect’ Swedish family on a ski vacation in the French Alps.  An avalanche catches them by surprise - not in the way that you are thinking - and the perceived danger reveals and completely shifts the dynamic in the family.  I’m trying not to give too much away.  I really enjoyed it and this was a fun watch, uncomfortable and also very funny at times.  I liked the way it was filmed although it did run a skosh long.  I kept mulling bits of it over several days later.

Star Wars, The Force Awakens (2015).  A fun return to the feel and spirit of the first three original movies.

Spectre (2015), Daniel Craig.  The latest in the Bond series.  It made me laugh and not in a good way.  Predictable.  Meh.  Why was everything shot in a weird sepia tone?  

Bloodline (2015), Sissy Spacek, Kyle Chandler, Ben Mendelsohn, Linda Cardellini.  New Netflix series.  A black sheep returns to the family fold.  Thoroughly entertaining.  

Making a Murderer (2015), Netflix documentary series. Ok, I was NOT intending to watch this but the series has taken on a life of its own since it aired last month, there is no escaping it, so I figured I’d better see what all the fuss was about.  It is essentially a study of our flawed criminal justice system, social class, the right to a lawyer and a fair trial, the presumption of innocence....  It seems to have shocked a great many viewers and created a storm of interest and outrage.  I used to work at a big law firm for many years that handled lots of pro bono cases, I have also served as a juror (twice), so from those two perspectives this was interesting to watch.  I am not going to opine on Steven Avery’s and Brandon Dassey’s cases - you can trawl the internet for every kind of review, theory, opinion, petition, and meme that's out there. I think the series highlighted in a very positive way the work of attorneys like Dean Strang and Jerry Buting.  I wouldn't say it was the best documentary of its kind out there. I can recommend the documentaries Murder on a Sunday Morning (2001), and Gideon’s Army (2013), I watched them several years ago so I don't know if they are currently available on Netflix.