4 to Consider . . .

Let's consider this the "marriage post" - I've got four here for your consideration.

We'll begin with the something old.  Recently, I saw Top Hat, a 1935 comedy considered by many to be the Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers pairing. Between 1933 and 1949, these two hoofers did a total of ten pictures together, nine for RKO and one (their only color film) for MGM. Say what you will about the tissue-thin plot, Top Hat is delightful. This was when movies were aspirational - the plot truly is ridiculous, but ignore that - reality and these dancing pictures really shouldn't spend unsupervised time together. Astaire is suave and blade-thin (as compared to the more muscular build of Gene Kelly) and Rogers is spunky and seems to float on air. Together, they're unstoppable. A wonderful, light-as-meringue way to while away a spring night.

Next, let's look at the something new. I just saw the new Johnny Depp science-fiction flick Transcendence.  It has some interesting questions to explore, but overall, this one's a rental.  (I was gratified to learn that even when the machines begin to rise, I should have no trouble locating an adequate supply of eyeliner and peroxide, however.) Really - this movie does take some risks, and it wants you to think about what it means to be human and is it worth giving up some very central things in return for health and life, but it didn't totally come together for me. It's directed by first-timer Wally Pfister, who is far better known for his cinematography work on films such as Inception and the Dark Knight movies and indeed, Christopher Nolan has an executive producer credit on Transcendence. One to watch, but this one left me unimpressed.

Now for something borrowed. As a child, I never got around to seeing Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal (1982), so I borrowed from my childhood and finally fixed that.  Sigh.  As a kid, certain scenes would have scared the bejeezus out of me and I can appreciate Henson's efforts to take puppetry to the next level.  But maybe you can just be too old to see something for the first time.  I liked the level of detail, but I found the plot to be trite, predictable, and meh.  And I hated that I found it to be so.  I really, really wanted to love this movie, but alas - perhaps it was too late for me.  Henson would go on to elevate puppetry in both Labyrinth and the TV series Farscape, so it's not that I dislike anything that isn't Muppet.

And last, the something blue. Living in small-town North Carolina, I am sometimes limited by what I can see locally.  I greatly regret - and it makes me blue - that I missed Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel. It's nowhere within an hour of me, but that's what DVDs and streaming services are for.  Still, if you're interested in a quirky movie involving a hotel, please seek out John Madden's The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.  You won't be disappointed.

It's Time to Play the Music . . .

OK, this is not going to be an unbiased review. I've loved the Muppets since they taught me how to count on Sesame Street lo those many years ago, and I'm pretty sure that a steady diet of The Muppet Show had something to do with my decision to pursue a backstage life throughout my early 20s. I relate a little too well to Kermit, who's always supposed to run the show, but is usually at the mercy of the asylum's inmates and spends a large amount of his time either sighing deeply or flinging his flippers in the air and screaming incoherently.

(Sorry, Jennifer Lawrence, I guess Kermit really is my spirit animal.)

In 2011, the Muppets were relaunched for a new generation.  I wasn't sure about this without the direct involvement of Frank Oz and Jim Henson (who sadly passed away in 1990) but my fears turned out to be unfounded. The sequel, Muppets Most Wanted, picks up quite literally at the end of the 2011 movie.

This is a caper movie - Kermit is supplanted by a lookalike frog who is a criminal mastermind. He promises the troupe their heart's desires, so they squash their suspicions that "Kermit" isn't acting quite like himself. Like all Muppets movies, much of the charm comes from guest spots and cameos - in addition to the trifecta of shine that is Ricky Gervais, Ty Burell, and Tina Fey, Most Wanted has walk-on roles for Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, and that's before the opening credits roll.  Look quick and you might spot Tom Hiddleston, Frank Langella, Salma Hayek, Josh Groban, Stanley Tucci, and dozens more, including a hilarious Danny Trejo who bills himself as a "triple threat.  I'm a singer, I'm a dancer, and I'm a murderer." (For the really deep cuts, click here.)

Is it a fantastic movie?  Probably not, but I was having too much fun to care. The Muppets are meta pop culture, which is my favorite dish. References to The Shawshank Redemption, A Chorus Line, Ingmar Bergman's Seventh Seal, Princess Beatrice's horrendous fascinator from the last royal wedding, and the legend of the ravens leaving the Tower of London are thrown in there, just for laughs from a few audience members.  There's plenty for the kids as well - I took my goddaughter to get that perspective (her dad, Victorian Marxist, came out to play as well). It's rated PG, although I'm not entirely sure why.

Indeed, it's time to play the music.  It's time to light the lights. Go buy your popcorn and relive your childhood.

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Hung with care - check!

Okay, let's get one thing straight.  In a world which has entire radio stations switching their format to Andy Williams and Bing Crosby to saturate the airwaves with Christmas songs, there's really not a war on Christmas.  Don't believe the hype - Christmas is so far from being under attack in the USA that it's nearly laughable.  Retailers expect to turn a profit for the year based on sales made in the final six weeks of the year - the very name "Black Friday" comes from a business turning a profit (recorded in black ink) as opposed to running at a loss (red ink) and they certainly want to welcome Christmas shoppers.  (Note:  They also want to welcome Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and, I daresay, Solstice shoppers.  It's the desire for profit that drives the more inclusive "Happy Holidays," not some sort of animosity towards the Christ Child.  Face it - Santa sells.) For further evidence, I live in the American South which seems to have an entire cottage industry based on turning out bizarrely festooned Christmas sweaters.  And yes, I own a couple, so I know of what I speak.

Radio stations aren't the only media to hop on the Christmas bandwagon.  The world of the Christmas special is upon us and I thought it would be a good time to mention ten of my personal favorites.

1. First off, you can't go wrong with any of the Rankin/Bass stop-motion specials.  Rudolph (you know, the one with the elf who wants to be a dentist), Frosty the Snowman, Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, and The Year Without a Santa Claus - all are lovely tales, best served with cocoa.  Don't blame me if you find yourself thinking about misfit toys or humming the Snow Miser song.
2. Don't forget the Grinch!  C'mon, Boris Karloff??  Cindy Lou Who?  Plan time for this one.  Plan time to ignore the Jim Carrey one.
3. And let's not overlook the special that gave us the "Snoopy dance" - A Charlie Brown Christmas.
4. The Muppet Christmas Carol.  Words cannot express how much I enjoy this one.  Gonzo the Great as Charles Dickens (helped out by Rizzo the Rat) was a wonderful idea, but to really make this one work, you need to understand the source material.  (Think of it this way.  You can enjoy Blazing Saddles if you've never seen another Western, but if you know the general structure and tropes of that type of film, the jokes become much, much funnier.)
5. Another parody of Dickens' tale is the Bill Murray film Scrooged.  I love this one, mostly for the spin it takes in having television take the place of Scrooge & Marley's bean-counting firm.  Darkly comic and it retains the transformative message that is the hallmark (if you will) of the Dickens story.
6. So what version of A Christmas Carol would I suggest?  Honestly, there are a lot out there to choose from (see this list!), but I like the George C. Scott version.  Really - watch this before you tackle the parodies listed above.    
7. Buffy the Vampire Slayer never did "a very special episode," for which I've always been glad, but there is a lovely Christmas-themed episode ("Amends" in Season 3) that deals directly with whether redemption is deserved or a gift without strings - and what to do if you feel you don't deserve such a gift.
8. Supernatural has a Christmas episode ("A Very Supernatural Christmas" in Season 3) that's become a recent addition to my "must watch" list.  It's irreverent and slapstick-funny in places, but also too violent for the smallest among us.  It's also bittersweet as you see the young Sam and Dean try to create Christmas in one of Supernatural's many cheap motel rooms.
9. And the very first Doctor Who episode I saw was the Christmas special ("The Christmas Invasion") from Russell Davies' relaunch of the series - and the first full one with David Tennant.  
10. Also, if you can find it, the short-lived 90s series My So-Called Life has a fantastic Christmas episode ("So-Called Angels") that's well worth seeking out.

There are many others, of course, but there's a decent start!


By the way, there's not a Christmas episode of Breaking Bad, for which I think we can all be grateful.