Thoughts on Living the Life Creative
Seven Samurai (1954) - A small farming village is threatened by repeated bandit attacks. They decide to hire samurai warriors to defeat the bandits once and for all. Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring - Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura Generally acknowledged as one of, if not the, greatest Japanese film of all time. Most American audiences... Continue Reading →
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling (1894) - A collection of stories about communities of wild animals mixed in with narrative poems. The best known stories are the title story, and "Rikki Tikki Tavi". There are also stories about seals, elephants and animals working with the Royal Army serving in India. Since the release of... Continue Reading →
Alfie (1966) - A Cockney playboy plays the field without remorse until he is finally confronted with some of the consequences of his lifestyle. Directed by:Lewis Gilbert Starring: Michael Caine, Shelly Winters, Vivian Merchant, Jane Asher, Denholm Elliot This movie presents an interesting dilemma. Alfie Elkins is a fairly nasty piece of work. He treats... Continue Reading →
Inglorious Basterds (2009) - A secret American unit is parachuted into occupied France during World War II to kill Nazis and spread terror. Their plan to kill German leadership coincides with a movie theater's owner's plan to get revenge for her family. Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Brad Pitt, Micheal Fassbender, Christoph Waltz,... Continue Reading →
Enemies - A History of the FBI by Tim Weiner (2012) - Pulitzer Prize winning writer and journalist Tim Weiner looks at the long history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation as an intelligence agency. From the very earliest days, the Bureau made gathering information about threats to their vision of the United States a... Continue Reading →
The Last Picture Show (1971) - a coming of age story set in a small, north Texas town in the early 1950's. Two best friends, Bobby and Sonny (Timothy Bottoms and Jeff Bridges), will try to find a future in the bleak, dying community they call home. Meanwhile Jacy, the prettiest girl in town (Cybill... Continue Reading →
Judgment of Paris: California vs. France and the Historic 1976 Paris Tasting That Revolutionized Wine by George M. Taber (2009) In 1976 the French wine making industry was certain of two things. First, that no one was their equal in wine. Second, that the Americans in California were certainly NOT even close. A small tasting... Continue Reading →
The Apartment (1960) - An insurance accountant hoping to make his way up the ladder of success allows senior managers to use his apartment for their "romantic" meetings. When he falls for his boss's latest girl things go sideways very quickly. Directed by Billy Wilder Starring - Jack Lemon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray, Ray Walston... Continue Reading →
The Fallen Angel by Daniel Silva (2012) - Gabriel Allon is a gifted art restorer. Under his care great masterpieces return to life after years of neglect. He is also a former Israeli Mossad spy and assassin who fervently wants to put that part of his life behind him. But his former associates in "The... Continue Reading →
I was doing a little house keeping the other day and realized that my 250th movie review was about to post. Doing a little scrolling back I ran across a few things that I thought were worth noting at this milestone. My rating system is designed to put most of the movies in the 2/3/4... Continue Reading →
Stories Are My Life 