This August 25th marks the 100th anniversary of illustrious composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein’s birth.
And this column in the august August Jacksonville Review marks our 100th contribution as your ever-faithful Unfettered Critics. As CE3K’s Roy Neary said to his bewildered family: “This means something.”
Or not. Maybe it’s just mashed potatoes.
We often struggle […]
The saga began like this: In 1958, actor Peter Lawford shared a story told by a gas station attendant with buddy Frank Sinatra. Lawford thought the fanciful caper about robbing five Las Vegas casinos in one night would make for a fun movie project. Sinatra playfully upped the ante: “Forget […]
Our readers may have noticed that we have an affinity for dogs. This doesn’t mean we automatically adore any movie featuring a canine (some are dogs, and we don’t mean that in a good way), but it does suggest we’ll make the effort to spend an afternoon at a matinee. […]
A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle’s award-winning 1962 novel, is beloved by generations of readers. It is “science fantasy”—too fanciful to be considered science fiction, but brimming with science-y theories on traveling through space without a spaceship. And, as with the most memorable children’s tales, it stresses the power of […]
We aren’t enamored of streaming services.
We don’t object to them. We just haven’t felt the need to sign up for “additional services.” We like network TV—free TV—although we know its future is shaky. So we tried to delay the inevitable…
…At least, until last fall, when we signed up for CBS […]
We love the smell of popcorn in the winter. It reminds us of…entertainment award show time!
The year kicks-off with the televised Golden Globes ceremony in January. And then comes February, and the Superbowl of entertainment events: the Academy Awards! Except this year, the Winter Olympics threw a loose ski pole […]
May we get personal here? We have a tale to tell.
Many of you know writer William Goldman for his Academy Award-winning screenplays to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and All The President’s Men. None of his work, however, is remembered as fondly as his story of Buttercup and Westley. […]
Okay, we’ll admit it. We haven’t reviewed much cinema this year. Frankly, we weren’t inspired by Hollywood’s offerings in 2017. Yes, we liked Wonder Woman (a lot) but many of the other films left us—hmm—we believe the correct word in the current parlance would be “meh.” Look it up.
Until recently, […]
You don’t know what you missed. And that makes us very sad.
We’re serious. Every August, the residents of Southern Oregon are offered a tremendous opportunity. Yet many residents let that opportunity slip away with little thought of its value. And, now that September has arrived, it’s gone. Again.
Yes, we’re talking […]
By the time you read this, the migration will have begun.
Dozens of classically trained, world-class musicians will be returning to the stage on Britt Hill, where Conductor Teddy Abrams will greet them, ready to chase the summer doldrums from all of our brains.
To some, the summer seems a sleepy time. […]
Comic books once were considered kid stuff. No one over sixteen admitted to reading them, let alone dared to dream of watching his or her favorite superheroes on the big screen. A theatrical serial starring Kirk Alyn as Superman arrived in the 1940s, but it was sequestered in kids’ matinees. […]
Shakespeare, we believe, was thinking of us, your humble critics, when he wrote these prophetic lines: “Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.”
With May hard upon us, and the submission deadline for this June column nigh, Will’s rough winds […]
Halfway through last winter, we began to feel antsy. We’d hike the Woodlands trail above the Britt Festival grounds—and pause to look longingly through the fence. We’d drive up Oregon Street—and inexplicably detour past the Britt Pavilion just to… just to…
Like we said: antsy.
Patience, it’s been noted, is not simply […]
Hollywood’s movie business is exactly that: a business, dedicated to the creation of art that (hopefully) will bring in enough money to cover the cast, crew, and dozens of others whose names you read in the end credits, while still garnering a sizable bottom line for the studios. The studios, […]
Recently a movie named A Dog’s Purpose flickered through the multiplexes. It hasn’t fared well. Critics across the country panned it. The New York Times’ reviewer got right to the point: “You can skip it because it’s clumsily manipulative dreck.”
We suspect that’s not the reaction the filmmakers hoped for. But […]
La La Land, a cinematic love letter to classic movie musicals, just won a bunch of Golden Globe Awards. Seven, in fact—the same number it was nominated for. You can expect it to win a bunch of Oscars, too. As well it should.
But not for the reasons you’d think. As […]
“Pressure pushing down on me, pressing down on you…” ~Queen/David Bowie
Whew! Well, that’s over. We finally can relax, knowing that the incessant pressure exerted by an endless flow of shrill television commercials, flyers cluttering our mailboxes, competing yard adornments, and snarling voices has come to an end. Few of us […]
One of our edicts is: “Don’t remake Hollywood’s great classics; remake the movies that had the potential to be great but were screwed up in some way.” Cases in point: remakes of The Karate Kid, King Kong (twice), Psycho, and The Pink Panther each did a disservice to the originals. […]
Thirty years ago, three master entertainers joined forces to create the fantasy film Labyrinth: director Jim Henson (creator of the Muppets), producer George Lucas (the man behind Star Wars), and actor/artist/rock god David Bowie.
If your memories of Labyrinth are vague, you’re probably a guy. If, however, your memories are tinged […]
Brace yourself. The cultural phenomenon known as Star Trek is about to turn 50. In the coming weeks, you’ll likely hear a lot about the celebratory gatherings taking place. But we like to think this monumental anniversary calls for a look back to the beginning.
On September 8, 1966, Star Trek […]
It was lunchtime. The café was jumping. We stood near the entrance, enjoying the air-conditioning while quietly awaiting an available table. Across the room, a gentleman stood to leave. As he approached the door, he glanced at our faces and smiled in apparent recognition. “Mr. Robot is coming back,” he […]
It’s official: Teddy Abrams loves a challenge. Now entering his third season as the Britt Orchestra’s music director, Abrams is challenging himself, the musicians from whom he will coax each precious note, and the audience that we’re sure will fall under his spell. If you anticipate a snoozy little symphony […]
Step right up, folks, for the most captivating show of the era. It’s everything a big-budget entertainment should be: edgy, unpredictable, alternately hilarious and horrific. Yes, it’s that character-driven competition known as The 2016 Presidential Election.
We’re fascinated by this big show. But as absorbed as we are, we can’t bring […]
Once upon a time, categorizing popular music was simple. Musicians stayed in their lane, playing either “Country/Western,” or “Rock ‘n’ Roll,” or “Folk,” or “Easy Listening.” Radio programmers would adopt a category and run with it. But then Willie Nelson let his hair grow long. Bob Dylan picked up an […]
We admit to being suckers for Hollywood biographies. Many of these “based on fact” movies extol the accomplishments of famous personalities: Lawrence of Arabia; Lincoln; J. Edgar. Others examine lesser-known individuals who deserve our attention: Schindler’s List; Twelve Years a Slave; A Dangerous Mind. Filmed portrayals of Stephen Hawking, Butch […]
We first noticed it in October of 2014. Singer Paul Revere, of Paul Revere and the Raiders, died at age 76. The band was internationally known, but he’d been born in Idaho, and shared the stage with Eugene, Oregon native Mark Lindsay, so to us it was a local story.
Three […]
Remember the slogan, “Don’t trust anybody over 30?” It was a centerpiece of the “generation gap,” that sprang up in the 1960s.
Well, a variant of that slogan has come back to haunt us: “Don’t trust anyone under 30.” And we’re hearing it, surprisingly, from music fans.
In the ‘50s, listeners, young […]
A few weeks ago, on Halloween night, we found ourselves standing in the middle of Jacksonville’s historic cemetery.
It was quiet up there, and very dark. The outlines of nearby tombstones were clear, but we couldn’t read the names on them without a flashlight. Reading, however, wasn’t what we were […]
Mars is an unlucky place to be stranded. The planet awaits, desolate and bleak, offering an environment with no air to breath, no water to drink (well, a little, if recent reports pan out), and no food to eat. The surface is dead. This, of course, makes Mars a lively […]
Why is a trailer like a t-shirt?
Showbiz, baby!
Every film marketer knows something about t-shirts that bear movie logos: they’re only in demand before the movie is released. Fans of Quentin Tarantino want to be “first on their block” to promote his upcoming film, so they’ll definitely wear that t-shirt with […]
If you’ve encountered us on the streets of Jacksonville within the past twelve months, you may have overheard us in heavy discussion about the meanings of words like “trapunto” and “boucle.” Or you may have heard us contemplating the virtues of double-sided tape in the dressing room. Or the reason […]
Reluctant to step outside without a straw hat, sunscreen and a handheld, battery-powered portable fan? Yeah, us too.
We’re not the first to despair over the hot sun in the summertime. In 1933, Songwriter Irving Berlin composed “We’re having a heat wave.” Ethyl Merman sang the song in the film Alexander’s […]
The Britt Classical Festival is about to begin. And we’re ecstatic!
Once again, one hundred-plus of the world’s finest musicians will take time from their tuneful day jobs to join us here in Jacksonville. We’ll welcome them into our homes and they’ll join us at our bistros and bars. But that’s […]
08/08/08.
That’s the date we arrived in Jacksonville. Not being numerologists, we had no idea of how auspicious a day it would prove to be. Our new house, located near the top of a (steep) hill, offered a great view. Our dogs approved of the yard. The neighbors, even after learning […]
You probably heard a while back that Weird Al Yankovic will be coming to J’Ville’s Britt hill. Yup, on September 2 that freaky accordion player who turned “Beat It” into “Eat It” will perform live right here in town. That early announcement was a rare “sneak peak” into the Britt […]
Two men with irrevocably intertwined lives passed away at the end of February: a world-famous actor, beloved by millions; and a highly successful producer, well known in Hollywood, less familiar to people outside of entertainment circles.
The actor was Leonard Nimoy. He entered the business in l951, performing onstage and onscreen, […]
British singer/songwriter Sam Smith is either a very lucky guy…or not quite so.
Smith reached the top of the charts last year with his soulful composition, “Stay With Me.” Then, just a few weeks ago at the 2015 Grammy Awards, the tune was named both “Song of the Year” and “Record […]
The movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid opens with this line on the screen: “Most of what follows is true.” While the main characters actually existed, their story’s timeframe has been truncated for convenience, and, some characters, for dramatic convenience, are consolidations of several actual people. Such is the […]
It’s one of the most unnerving scenes in cinema history. A woman sneaks into the room where her husband has been writing his novel. She peeks at the sheet of paper in his typewriter and starts reading: “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” She reads […]
We’ve been asked why we don’t include restaurant reviews in our ramblings on all things “entertainment.” The simple answer is that we know better. The servers and chefs of Jacksonville’s dozen eating establishments are almost like family—and we wouldn’t want to create sibling rivalries by touting the efforts of one over another. Acclaimed food critic […]
The Britt season has come to an end, but that doesn’t mean our need for live music has ended. We love live music. In fact, as Woody Allen explained in (Terry’s favorite movie), Annie Hall, “Love is too weak a word.” Well, Woody invented some new ones for us: We […]
The Unfettered Critic – September 2014
Watching TV has never been so easy. Or so hard.
Remember when three networks—CBS, NBC and ABC—scheduled our viewing for us? Today we download favorite shows to “devices” like smart phones, tablets, computers and (insert new tech here!) in order to view them whenever we want. Now dozens of cable networks, […]
We were taken aback last summer when a friend grumbled that George Gershwin’s l925 composition “Concerto in F” shouldn’t have been on a Britt conductor’s playlist. “The piece is one of our favorites,” we countered. “The guest pianist was exceptional and the orchestra delivered a brilliant performance.”
“It’s not classical,” he […]
You’ve seen a great food movie or two, right? One that teases your salivary glands the way a romance tugs at your heartstrings? Tampopo (1985) presents a bowl of noodles as more sensuous than sex. Babette’s Feast (1987) tempts with lustful terrapin soup, quail in vol-au-vents and blinis. Like Water […]
Maybe you’ve noticed. You’ll be watching the final moments of a television show. Just as the characters arrive at the quintessential pinnacle of dramatic closure, a pop song that isn’t part of the normal background music springs forth. The scene continues without dialogue, using the power of song to enhance the emotions playing out on screen.
We made a mistake.
Two seasons ago, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival presented “Animal Crackers,” the Marx Brothers masterpiece that stormed Broadway in 1929 and hit Hollywood in l930. We’d heard how great the OSF production was. But we were busy. We missed it. And […]
In our Unfettered column last October, we told you we were looking forward to five movies scheduled to open before the end of 2013. We hadn’t seen them; they weren’t in theatres yet. We chose them because of the buzz they generated, and because their trailers, which we watched on the web, seemed tantalizing.
Here’s how it works. In theory. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences mails Oscar Nomination ballots to its 5000-plus members—producers, directors, actors, cinematographers, etc.—so they can vote for the best productions offered throughout the year...
Jacksonville, it seems, is the ultimate unanticipated destination. We all know why we left our old stomping grounds—too much traffic, too impersonal, etc...
The Jacksonville Woodlands Park and Trail System meanders above and around town, providing...