Here are a few of my favorite things right now.
Jurassic World
I don’t care what anyone else says or thinks, I love
“Jurassic World”.
I absolutely love the music by Michael Giacchino and how beautifully it merges with the classic “Jurassic Park" themes of John Williams. I love the
big action set pieces and the production design of the park itself. I love the
character arc of Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) from a corporate shrill ice queen
to an action hero that cares. I love the “Indiana Jones” styled Owen character
(Chris Pratt), his second in command Barry (Omar Sy), and the relationship they
have with the raptors. I love the fact that the T-rex from the first film is
given finally proper respect he so desperately deserves.
But most of all I love the film’s philosophy and heart, and
its thematic subtext about responsibility when it comes to the exploitation of
nature and animals.
The Veronicas
I have been obsessively playing this knockout new album and
watching their new serialized videos. My iPod training playlist is peppered
with Veronica songs both new and old, and the new CD spins non-stop in my car.
As the lyrics to one the new album’s songs says, after a way too long hiatus of
five years the Veronica are “back with a vengeance”.
The self-titled new album is a glorious treasure trove of
catchy pop tunes laced with a touch of the edgy rocker girl angst that
dominated the identical twins’ 2007 album “Hook Me Up”. “Teenage Millionaire” is an irresistibly
dance-able piece of pop art I just cannot get enough of and “You Ruin Me” is a
masterful ballad of heart-breaking proportions.
Wayward Pines
This summer has seen the improbable comebacks of two major
forces in entertainment who have spent the last decade in an embarrassing tailspin. One of them
is Arnold (see below). The other is M. Night Shyamalan who directed the impressive “Wayward
Pines” pilot episode and is Executive Producer of this addictive new
mystery/thriller/science fiction summer series.
Based on the novels by Blake Crouch, this sumptuously
photographed series certainly owes a huge debt to David Lynch’s and Mark
Frost’s legendary cult show “Twin Peaks”, as well as Chris Carter’s criminally
underrated mid-90s horror series “Millennium”. But the spooky “Wayward Pines”
boldly goes off in its own very original direction.
The studly and ageless Matt Dillon anchors a dream cast that
includes Terrance Howard, Shannyn Sossamon, Toby Jones, Melissa Leo, Hope
Davis, Juliet Lewis and the sexy Carla Gugino. “Wayward Pines” is event-style
television drama at its best.
Terminator Genisys
Admittedly. I am a fan. Hell, even hearing that famous four
note “Terminator” musical motif (Ta da, da da) gets me jacked, so I will grant
you that the nostalgia effect is present in my perception (and reception) of
this movie. But still, as is the cases in so many films of late, the grumpy
critics are way off on this one. Similar to what happened with Robert Zemickis’s 1989
time travel masterpiece “Back to the Future II”, everyone keeps complaining it
is “muddled” and “confusing” and they don’t understand it. While “Genisys is
not in the same class as “Back to the Future II”, and the multiple timelines
have the added challenge of having different actors in the same roles and being
shot thirty years later, the timelines are still clean, logical and respectful
of both the sacred texts of James Cameron and the latest theories of quantum
mechanics.
But beyond all that and most important of all, Arnold is
back! After a spectacular and humiliating fall from grace, the former persona
non grata has worked himself back into shape (physically and acting wise) with
the same trademark intense focus that once made him the biggest star in the
world—an actor who along with director James Cameron literally created a new
genre in 1984, the R-rated science fiction action film.
Seeing this movie was like seeing the old Arnold at the peak
of his powers in 1991. His rock star charisma has returned and he has great
chemistry with the fantastic Emilia Clarke. She is wonderful as Sarah Conner. What
I loved most about this movie was the relationship between their two
characters. And of course that four note motif.
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