In Search of the Clark Sisters

April 11 2020 – The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel (2020) Lifetime

I didn’t expect a Lifetime movie to show up in this blog diary, but I have been looking forward to this movie for weeks. We pass a billboard for the Clark Sisters movie on San Vicente when I am out driving with Henry practicing for that eventual day when the DMV resumes giving out driving tests. Henry makes fun of me because I get so excited about the movie every time we pass the billboard. I have loved the Clark Sisters – a great Gospel music group from Detroit – for a long time, ever since 1983 when I first heard their crossover hit “You Brought the Sunshine” in a dance club in Ann Arbor. Pam Kisch and I once went on a search for the Clark Sisters in Detroit which brought us to an African-American church in Detroit because we were told incorrectly by a clerk in a Gospel record shop that they were going to sing there. Pam and I were ashamed to be in jeans and t-shirts when everyone else in the church was in fancy suits and dresses, but the people in the church couldn’t have been nicer or more welcoming. I did later see the Clark Sisters in concert with the Winans in Boston in the 1990s, and they did not disappoint — unlike the movie, which was truly awful, moving quickly through emotional confrontations between family members and wedding proposals without build-up, repercussions or any character development at all. The musical performances in the movie were great though, a nice recreation of the Clark Sisters sound. Still, if you want an introduction to the Clark Sisters, I suggest watching this live concert clip instead of the Lifetime movie.

A Very Good Day

April 11 2020 – Eyes of Laura Mars (1978) Criterion Channel

It was a very good day. I woke up after a good night’s sleep. I prepared my blog for launch. I got good news from my mom’s doctor and my accountant. Wendey, Henry, and I played a game of Settlers of Catan. And then to cap it off, I watched Eyes of Laura Mars, a stylish 1970s thriller about a fashion photographer who sees murders through the eyes of a serial killer. I doubt if I would have liked this move back when it came out, but now all the silly things about it – its attempt to critique art and fashion photography, some of the plot twists, the disco soundtrack – just seem charming. This is Tommy Lee Jones’ first major role, and Faye Dunaway is great as always. I was pleased to see Raul Julia – an actor I used to like a lot but had almost forgotten about. The cheesy Barbra Streisand theme song is a perfect example of the 1970s theme song archetype. And John Carpenter – director of Halloween and so many other movies – wrote the script. Watching this film was a very good ending to a very good day.

Counterpoint

April 9, 2020 – Snowpiercer (2013) Netflix

This was Henry’s pick – we were all fans of Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite.  But I don’t think Henry had any idea how weird and disturbing this movie would be. We lost Wendey right away at the first sign of violence.  Henry and I stuck it out to the end.  I think he regretted watching the movie all the way through, but I liked the movie’s combination of heavy-handed parable, humor, action sequences, and weird sets and scenarios.  Snowpiercer is no Parasite, but it is also not the same old thing – a fine counterpoint to this morning’s movie Remember the Titans. 

A Break From Subtlety and Nuance

April 9, 2020 – Remember the Titans (2000) Prime

Today was a day to recover from a tough work week, from planning and holding our Passover seder last night, and from a bit more than four cups of wine. Here is a recovery day movie that did not require a lot of concentration to watch. Remember the Titans announced its lack of subtlety and nuance from the start. There is no subtext in this film – everything is spelled out. The score is saccharine and manipulative. There is no “unconscious bias” in Titans – all the racism is overt, conscious and extreme.  But be assured that by the final act, people are brought together across racial lines by the redemptive power of Football. There was not a single thing that happened during this movie that we didn’t foresee, but despite this predictability, Titans is a pleasant, well-made movie.  The adult leads – Denzel Washington and Will Paton – are excellent, and the teen leads are good too. A highlight was a performance by a very young Hayden Panettiere. This movie was too long – it should not take two hours to tell this story – but entertaining in its obvious way. 

Moral Compass

April 7, 2020 – Better Call Saul, Season 5 (2020) AMC

Work has been insanely busy. I have all the usual things to do, plus trying to figure out how to respond to the pandemic. We put out this Passover seder supplement asking Californians to call on Governor Newsom to reduce the prison population to help stop the spread of the Coronavirus. I shouldn’t complain. I am lucky to have work at all in these hard times, and I am grateful. But it has left me without as much time as I hoped to watch films. Despite the workload, I have managed to keep up with Better Call Saul, one of my favorite TV shows. This is the story of a lawyer (Bob Odenkirk) and a former police officer (Jonathan Banks) who lose their moral compasses. Rhea Seehorn gives an amazing performance as well as another lawyer and the girlfriend of the titular Saul.  This show is so well-made and smart. 

Stylish Then and Now

April 4, 2020 – Diva (1981) Criterion Channel

This thriller was stylish in 1981, and it is stylish now: opera, mopeds, Paris, a cool loft, murder, and corruption. Directed by Jean-Jacques Beineix, who also directed Betty Blue, a movie I liked back in the day that may soon make an appearance in this film festival diary. It was a nice world to disappear into for a while.

Not What I am Looking For

April 4, 2020 – Pain and Glory (2019) Screener

When I think of Pedro Almodovar movies, I think of bright colors, high energy, sex, and melodrama. The latest Almodover film is Pain and Glory, and it is not the work of a young man. This movie is about an aging filmmaker who suffers from writer’s block and chronic illness. The movie is well made, but not the comfort or distraction I am looking for in these troubled times. I prefer there be no illness in my Shelter-In-Place Films. 

Wind Through the Trees

April 4, 2020 – Devs, Season 1 (2020) Hulu

I took a break from movies to watch this great new show.  Nick Offerman stars as the Elon Musk/Mark Zuckerberg figure at the head of a big tech company working on a mysterious new project.  Part mystery, part philosophical inquiry, part five-minutes-in-the-future science fiction, this show is unpredictable and strikingly beautiful. Though it moves at a contemplative pace, it has held my attention for every single moment. It is not as weird or as challenging to watch as Twin Peaks, but the haunting shots of the wind blowing through the trees recall this 1990s favorite.  Devs is better than many of the movies we have watched in this film festival.

Fake News

April 1. 2020 – Talking instead of watching

Wendey (reading from the internet):  “It says they have canceled all sales of liquor in California.”

Lee (thinking to himself): Panic!  I don’t think I can survive this pandemic without alcohol.

Wendey (reading further):  “Oh, never mind.  It was an April Fool’s joke.”

Lee (thinking to himself): I need a drink.

Lively and Sexy

March 29, 2020 – Chico & Rita (2010) Kanopy

I love this animated love story about a piano player and singer in Cuba in the 1940s who travel to the U.S. to seek fame and fortune. The animation is great – lively and sexy (the movie has brief nudity and sex – this film is not for children) – and the film’s music is amazing. Bebo Valdes plays the piano and wrote the original songs, and Idaina Valdes sings for Rita. If you like Jazz and Cuban music, I highly recommend this movie. The soundtrack has been in steady rotation on our sound system.