The tiger in the tiger pit
is not more irritable than I.
The whipping tail is not more still
Than when I smell the enemy
Writhing in the essential blood
Or dangling from the friendly tree.
When I lay bare the tooth of wit
The hissing over the arche'd tongue
Is more affectionate than hate,
More bitter than the love of youth,
And inaccessible by the young.
Reflected from my golden eye
The dullard knows that he is mad.
Tell me if I am not glad!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Wislawa Szymborska
I AM TOO CLOSE
I am too close for him to dream of me.
I don't flutter over him, don't flee him beneath the roots of trees.
I am too close.The caught fish doesn't sing with my voice.
The ring doesn't roll from my finger.
I am too close. The great house is on fire without me calling for help.
Too closefor one of my hairs to turn into the rope of the alarm bell.
Too close to enter as the guest before whom walls retreat.
I'll never die again so lightly, so far beyond my body, so unknowingly as I did once in his dream.
I am too close,too close, I hear the word hiss and see its glistening scales as I lie motionlessin his embrace.
He's sleeping,more accessible at this moment to an usherette he saw once in a traveling circus with one lion, than to me, who lies at his side.
A valley now grows within him for her, rusty-leaved, with a snowcapped mountain at one end rising in the azure air.
I am too close to fall from that sky like a gift from heaven. My cry could only waken him.
And what a poor gift: I, confined to my own form, when I used to be a birch, a lizard shedding times and satin skins in many shimmering hues. And I possessed the gift of vanishing before astonished eyes, which is the richest of all.
I am too close,too close for him to dream of me.
I slip my arm from underneath his sleeping head -it's numb, swarming with imaginary pins.A host of fallen angels perches on each tip,waiting to be counted.
the poem is from Wislawa Szymborska Poems New and Collected, translated by Stanislaw Baranczak and Clare Cavanagh.
I am too close for him to dream of me.
I don't flutter over him, don't flee him beneath the roots of trees.
I am too close.The caught fish doesn't sing with my voice.
The ring doesn't roll from my finger.
I am too close. The great house is on fire without me calling for help.
Too closefor one of my hairs to turn into the rope of the alarm bell.
Too close to enter as the guest before whom walls retreat.
I'll never die again so lightly, so far beyond my body, so unknowingly as I did once in his dream.
I am too close,too close, I hear the word hiss and see its glistening scales as I lie motionlessin his embrace.
He's sleeping,more accessible at this moment to an usherette he saw once in a traveling circus with one lion, than to me, who lies at his side.
A valley now grows within him for her, rusty-leaved, with a snowcapped mountain at one end rising in the azure air.
I am too close to fall from that sky like a gift from heaven. My cry could only waken him.
And what a poor gift: I, confined to my own form, when I used to be a birch, a lizard shedding times and satin skins in many shimmering hues. And I possessed the gift of vanishing before astonished eyes, which is the richest of all.
I am too close,too close for him to dream of me.
I slip my arm from underneath his sleeping head -it's numb, swarming with imaginary pins.A host of fallen angels perches on each tip,waiting to be counted.
the poem is from Wislawa Szymborska Poems New and Collected, translated by Stanislaw Baranczak and Clare Cavanagh.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
See http://www.poets.org/ and sign up for a poem a day sent to your email!
Prometheus Unbound, Act IV
Prometheus Unbound, Act IV
Percy Bysshe Shelley
* * * * * * *
To suffer woes which Hope thinks infinite;
To forgive wrongs darker than death or night;
To defy Power, which seems omnipotent;
To love, and bear; to hope till Hope creates
From its own wreck the thing it contemplates;
********
* * * * * * * * * *
SOME FAVORITE OPERA SELECTIONS
http://youtube.com/watch?v=K5MDDoQVTfY Marilyn Horne sings a Spanish Canzonetta
Soprano Renee Fleming sings "Ebben ne andro lontana," from La Wally.
Absolute gorgeous!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdFBA2r-FiE
Traviata Animada - Clay Animated Opera / Opera Animada en Plastilina
Molto molto charming! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cZ6RRjsVmM&feature=related
Cesare Siepi sings "Ella giammai m'amo" from Don Carlos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecn6VzaI-UQ
Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Florez canta "La Flor de la Canela"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=U3BQs99Y66g
Soprano Renee Fleming sings "Ebben ne andro lontana," from La Wally.
Absolute gorgeous!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdFBA2r-FiE
Traviata Animada - Clay Animated Opera / Opera Animada en Plastilina
Molto molto charming! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cZ6RRjsVmM&feature=related
Cesare Siepi sings "Ella giammai m'amo" from Don Carlos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecn6VzaI-UQ
Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Florez canta "La Flor de la Canela"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=U3BQs99Y66g
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
CV LIBRARY CREEK NEWS
Creek in the news
Monday, February 25, 2008
While many of us were watching the Academy Awards last night the Channel 5 news presented a piece on the daylighting of the creek next to the library.
Take a look.
http://cbs5.com/video/?id=31598@kpix.dayport.com
Monday, February 25, 2008
While many of us were watching the Academy Awards last night the Channel 5 news presented a piece on the daylighting of the creek next to the library.
Take a look.
http://cbs5.com/video/?id=31598@kpix.dayport.com
CASTRO VALLEY LIBRARY GROUNDBREAKING!
Groundbreaking!!!
Thursday, March 6, 2008, What do the Castro Valley Library and Paul Revere have in common? APRIL 18th.
The poem goes “on the eighteenth of April, in seventy-five, Hardly a man is still alive who remembers that famous day and year”.
That date is about to be famous for another reason here in Castro Valley. We are finally breaking ground on our new library on Friday April 18th 2008!!
You are invited to join the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, and the Alameda County Library at the Ground Breaking for the New Castro Valley Library.
Please join us at 3:30 pm, 3600 Norbridge Ave. Castro Valley for this long awaited community triumph.
Thursday, March 6, 2008, What do the Castro Valley Library and Paul Revere have in common? APRIL 18th.
The poem goes “on the eighteenth of April, in seventy-five, Hardly a man is still alive who remembers that famous day and year”.
That date is about to be famous for another reason here in Castro Valley. We are finally breaking ground on our new library on Friday April 18th 2008!!
You are invited to join the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, and the Alameda County Library at the Ground Breaking for the New Castro Valley Library.
Please join us at 3:30 pm, 3600 Norbridge Ave. Castro Valley for this long awaited community triumph.
BOOKS RECENTLY READ
Here's a great website for researching books, storing your reviews and sharing with friends. Please join me if you'd like to discuss what you're reading!
http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/901798
Check out my reading list on Goodreads - where you can see what your friends are reading.
http://www.goodreads.com/friend/i?i=LTM2MDYxOTcxMzY6MzIy%0A
http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/901798
Check out my reading list on Goodreads - where you can see what your friends are reading.
http://www.goodreads.com/friend/i?i=LTM2MDYxOTcxMzY6MzIy%0A
FAVORITE MOVIES
From Reviews of Gattopardo on Netflix site:
http://www.netflix.com/ReviewsAndLists?prid=109360264&myprofile=y&lnkctr=fsb2mrl
The Leopard (Original Italian Version)
This classic film set in 1880s Sicily, is based on the famous Italian novel "Il Gattopardo" (written by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa) that chronicles social and political change on the island during the Risorgimento. Prince Don Fabrizio Salina (Burt Lancaster) attempts to hold onto the glory he once knew, while his nephew, Tancredi Falconeri (Alain Delon), has joined opposition forces and is being heralded as a war hero. As Falconeri begins to fall for Angelica (Claudia Cardinale), the daughter of the town's new mayor, Don Calogero Sedara (Paolo Stoppa), Salina must learn to accept his changing political status and to secure the future of his family by adhering to the principles of his family motto, "in order for things to stay the same, they will have to change."
Gigi
Leslie Caron stars as Gigi, an avant-garde French waif being groomed as the fille de joie of affluent and handsome Gaston (Louis Jourdan). Soon Gigi metamorphoses into a stunning beauty, and the head-over-heels Gaston asks for her hand. But Gigi's courtesan grandmother is aghast: No one in the family has ever considered something as plebeian as matrimony! This 1958 gem won Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director (Vincente Minnelli).
The Godfather
Director Francis Ford Coppola brings Mario Puzo's multigenerational crime saga to life in this Oscar-winning epic. When an organized crime family patriarch (Marlon Brando) barely survives an attempt on his life, his son Michael (Al Pacino) convinces his brother Sonny (James Caan) to let him take care of the would-be killers. Amid betrayals and corruption, Michael launches a campaign of bloody revenge that continues through the film's two sequels.
Upstairs, Downstairs: Entire Seasons
Thirty years before Robert Altman redefined the English drawing room drama with Gosford Park, this beloved Masterpiece Theatre series chronicled the lives and loves of the aristocratic "upstairs" Bellamy family and their loyal "downstairs" servants. In the show's fifth and final season, the Great War was over and the Roaring Twenties had arrived, giving the characters exciting new opportunities and challenges.
Ladyhawke
Phillipe Gaston (Matthew Broderick), a thief also known as the Mouse, escapes from his medieval dungeon prison and is chased by the guards of a villainous bishop. Phillipe befriends the gallant Captain Navarre (Rutger Hauer), who's been the bishop's target ever since he rescued the Lady Isabeau (Michelle Pfeiffer). But Phillipe soon learns that Navarre and Isabeau are victims of a curse that will keep them apart forever.
The King of Masks
Nearing the end of his life, Wang -- a locally renowned street performer and wizard of the venerable art of mask magic -- yearns to pass on his technique. But custom prescribes that he can only hand down his craft to a male successor. Anxious to preserve his unique art, the heirless Wang buys an impoverished 8-year-old on the black market. When the child divulges a dreaded secret, Wang faces a choice between filial love and societal tradition.
Waiting for Guffman
Community theater gets spit-roasted in this blistering mockumentary written by (and starring) Christopher Guest, who plays the ultrafey Corky St. Clair, a local theater impresario. In honor of Blaine, Mo.'s 150th anniversary, St. Clair mounts a mediocre musical tribute to the town with hopes of taking the production to Broadway. Eugene Levy costars, along with a talented ensemble cast.
Ordinary People
Everything is in its proper place in the Jarrett household -- except the past. Mary Tyler Moore won an Oscar nomination for her role as a repressed mother whose favorite son has died, leaving her with another (Timothy Hutton) she can barely tolerate. Robert Redford's first directorial effort netted four Academy Awards, including Best Director, Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for a young Hutton.
Seinfeld: Entire Seasons
See how NBC's famous show "about nothing" -- one of the most popular sitcoms of all time -- first became "must-see TV." Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) leads the Manhattan foursome that also includes frustrated George (Jason Alexander), sometimes-shrill Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and, of course, Kramer (Michael Richards), Jerry's big-haired, eccentric neighbor with a knack for unique entrances. Keep an ear peeled for your favorite catchphrases. ...
Francesco Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur: Alla Scala
This sumptuous, 1989 production of Francesco Cilea's operatic masterwork features soprano Mirella Freni in the role of Adriana Lecouvreur, a popular, 18th century, French stage star bound by love to the Count of Saxony. Regrettably for Adriana, however, he's already promised to the Princess of Bouillon, and a fiery battle of wills ensues. Gianandrea Gavazzeni directs Teatro Alla Scala's orchestra and chorus.
Jane Eyre
Adapted from Charlotte Brontë's gothic romance novel, this BBC miniseries tells the story of orphan Jane Eyre (Sian Pattenden and Zelah Clarke), whose early years are marked by mistreatment at the hands of her caretakers. Jane lands a governess job at the mysterious Mr. Rochester's (Timothy Dalton) estate, Thornfield, and is eventually drawn to the tortured man. The only series to watch!
The History Boys
Nicholas Hytner, Richard Griffiths and Frances de la Tour reprise their Tony-winning roles in this engaging film version of Alan Bennett's play chronicling a rowdy group of boys on their way to higher education. On a quest to attend either Oxford or Cambridge, the teens grapple with the intricacies of university entrance exams and admissions, ultimately learning as much about the education system as they do about academics.
Schindler's List
Steven Spielberg's Holocaust epic won seven Academy Awards (including Best Picture) and is an unforgettable testament to the possibility of human goodness. Greedy factory owner Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson) was exploiting cheap Jewish labor, but in the midst of WWII became an unlikely humanitarian, losing his fortune by helping to save 1,100 Jews from Auschwitz.
Splendor in the Grass
Young lovers Deanie Loomis (Natalie Wood) and Bud Stamper (Warren Beatty, in his big-screen debut) find their awakening sexuality at odds with their moral standards and with those of their 1920s rural Kansas community. Trying to resist their carnal urges leads to mutual heartbreak -- and to madness for the fragile Deanie. Director Elia Kazan's profile of the repercussions of pent-up pubescent lust netted an Oscar for Best Screenplay.
Tomorrow
Jackson Fentry (Robert Duvall) is a lonely Mississippi farmer whose introverted personality matches his solitary lifestyle. His wake-up call comes in the form of the pregnant Sarah Eubanks (Olga Bellin), whose husband has left her. Realizing that Sarah needs a place to stay, Fentry takes her in … and slowly falls in love with her. After she gives birth, the two are married, only to have tragedy strike a short time later.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Southern comforts abound in this classic adaptation of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Gregory Peck won an Oscar for his role as Atticus Finch, a widowed lawyer who takes on the task of defending an innocent black man (Brock Peters) against rape charges, only to wind up in a maelstrom of hate and prejudice that threatens to invade the lives of his children, Jem and Scout (Phillip Alford and Mary Badham).
51 Birch Street
Married 54 years, Mike and Mina Block were the picture of if not wedded bliss then at least rock-solid stability -- or so thought their son, documentary filmmaker Doug Block. But when his mother dies unexpectedly and his father swiftly marries his former secretary, Doug suddenly realizes there was more to his parents' union than met his eye. Turning his lens on his own family, he discovers much he never knew about the people who raised him.
The Wizard of Oz
The classic tale of Dorothy and her friends comes to life again with this animated adaptation of the beloved L. Frank Baum story. Toto, the Tin Man, Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion are all on board for whimsical adventures all the way from the tornado-laden Kansas countryside of Dorothy's home to the Wizard's sparkling Emerald City.
Topsy-Turvy
After their production of "Princess Ida" tanks, Arthur Gilbert (Allan Corduner) and William Sullivan (the wonderful Jim Broadbent) start a cold war that threatens to end their long-lasting partnership. When friends and associates work overtime to bring them back together, the result is their classic play "The Mikado." Thoughtful and winningly acted, Topsy-Turvy garnered four Academy Award nominations and won for best costume design and makeup.
Cabaret
Prewar Berlin's debauchery and turbulence is chronicled through the perspective of a British scribe (Michael York) and his comrades, among them flamboyant American nightclub entertainer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli). Existing in a morally ambiguous void, they doggedly maintain their façades as the world outside the cabaret gears for war. Director Bob Fosse uses the kitsch cabaret to reflect German society as it shifts from hedonism to Hitlerism.
Mr. Skeffington
Bette Davis earned an Oscar nod for her portrayal of a narcissistic socialite who gets her comeuppance in this bittersweet tale. To keep her embezzling brother out of jail, Fanny Trellis (Davis) weds wealthy Job Skeffington (Claude Rains) but seeks a divorce when her sibling, angry about Fanny's one-sided union, runs off to war and gets killed. Ever the coquette, Fanny takes up with a host of men … until diphtheria spoils her trademark beauty.
The Pallisers
Get caught up in this BBC drama based on the books of Victorian author Anthony Trollope. Meet Plantagenet Palliser (Phillip Latham) and Lady Glencora (Emmy Award-winner Susan Hampshire), British aristocrats whose lives Trollope aptly renders in his novels (which include Phineas Finn, The Prime Minister and The Duke's Children). The screen versions, like the novels, are rife with intrigue and deep-seated passion.
Wit
Emma Thompson stars as Vivian Bearing, a disciplined, esteemed English professor dealing with a sensitive issue -- her health. After being diagnosed with ovarian cancer, Vivian is forced to reassess her life and decide what's really important. Wit also tells the stories of the people Vivian touches, including her healthcare team. Directed by Mike Nichols and adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama by Margaret Edson.
A Shot in the Dark
When a wealthy college student (James Bush) is found hanging dead from a tree, his roommate (Charles Starrett) enlists the help of his detective father (Robert Warwick) to sift through the clues and uncover the killer. The plot thickens when the gumshoes determine that a sizable inheritance was involved. Meanwhile, an autopsy uncovers an even more startling piece of information: The boy was dead long before he was hung.
To Be and To Have
The once-acclaimed French school system is under siege, with overcrowding making it impossible for children to receive the education they deserve. But there's one place that's trying to buck the tide. This documentary by Nicolas Philibert visits a one-room schoolhouse in rural Saint-Etienne Sur Usson, where Georges Lopez teaches his 13 students, ranging in age between 3 and 10, the old-fashioned way ... with effort, attention and encouragement.
Educating Rita
This warm and witty take on the Pygmalion story stars Julie Walters as piquant hairdresser Rita, who's determined to better herself, and Michael Caine as alcoholic professor Dr. Frank Bryant, who becomes her reluctant tutor. As Rita blossoms under his tutelage, Frank also learns a few lessons about life. The romantic comedy earned a trio of BAFTA Awards (including Best Film), a pair of Golden Globes and three Oscar nominations.
The Insider
One man told the truth. Another reported the story. Both paid the price. The Insider -- a true tale about a Big Tobacco scientist (Russell Crowe) who exposed industry secrets, and the newsman (Al Pacino) who fought corporate forces that would have squelched the story -- offers a glimpse into power, media and money in America. A thought-provoking and thrilling film.
The Lives of Others
Set in 1980s East Berlin, director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's debut feature (which earned an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film) provides an exquisitely nuanced portrait of life under the watchful eye of the state police as a high-profile couple is bugged. When a successful playwright and his actress companion become subjects of the Stasi's secret surveillance program, their friends, family and even those doing the watching find their lives changed too.
It All Starts Today
Daniel, a teacher, is one of those heroes we don't often encounter: the everyday hero who fights the good fight because it's the right thing to do. Director Bertrand Tavernier provides an intimate look at one man's struggle to make a difference in his students' lives in this powerful story about real life that defines the meaning of passion and commitment and illustrates the resilience of the human spirit.
Monty Python's Life of Brian
The crown princes of British comedy are at it again -- this time, in a send-up of the life and times of Jesus Christ. Perhaps the most controversial (and offensive, to some) Python film, Life of Brian tells the tall tale of a peasant boy born the same night as the Christ child -- in an adjoining stable. Laughs mount as their lives increasingly intersect.
Normal
Roy (Tom Wilkinson), a small-town Illinois man, wildly declares after blacking out on his 25th wedding anniversary that he's convinced he's a woman trapped inside a man's body. It's up to Roy's shell-shocked wife, Irma (Jessica Lange), his kids and the entire community to come to terms with this stunning revelation. It won't be easy. Based on a hit play by Jane Anderson.
The Notebook
Based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, this drama chronicles an enduring love that withstands both war and disease. It begins in a nursing home, where a man (James Garner) arrives every day armed with a notebook from which he reads stories about a couple, Noah and Allie (played by Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams), to an unresponsive woman (Gena Rowlands). Who are the characters in the book, and why does the stranger insist on reading about them aloud?
Paper Moon
A con man (Ryan O'Neal) and his precocious "daughter" (Tatum O'Neal, in an Oscar-winning role as Best Supporting Actress) grift their way across the heartland of depression-era America in director Peter Bogdanovich's nostalgic look at the 1930s. As the two try desperately to scrounge up enough money to live on, their "father/daughter relationship" soon becomes a business partnership when they realize they need each other for survival.
Philadelphia
When attorney Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) reveals his HIV-positive status -- and his homosexuality -- to his co-workers, he soon finds himself unemployed. Seeking to sue for wrongful termination, Hanks works with the only lawyer who'll take the case: ambulance-chasing, homophobic Joe Miller (Denzel Washington). Hanks received an Oscar for his work in this Jonathan Demme-directed film -- the first major-studio picture to tackle the topic of AIDS.
Ponette
When her mother dies in a car accident, 4-year-old Ponette (Victoire Thivisol) is left physically and emotionally scarred and in the care of her grief-stricken father. Sent to live with family for a while, Ponette sullenly navigates a world made up mostly of children's faces and slowly comes to terms with her loss. Thivisol's powerful, haunting performance earned her a Best Actress award at the Venice Film Festival in 1996.
The Remains of the Day
Dutiful butler Stevens (Anthony Hopkins) is the epitome of dedication as he tends to the house of his master, Lord Darlington (James Fox). Head housekeeper Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson) tries to coax Stevens out of his staid shell, but it's only later in life -- when Stevens realizes what his silent response to his master's Nazi sympathies has cost him -- that he seeks her out. This Merchant-Ivory period drama was nominated for eight Oscars.
The Pink Panther
Bumbling French Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin) must solve the murder of a world-famous soccer coach and catch the thief who stole his priceless diamond ring in this prequel to the 1964 classic. Suspects include a gorgeous pop star (Beyoncé), a soccer player and a Chinese assassin. Can clumsy Clouseau and his partner, Ponton (Jean Reno), solve the mystery and keep Chief Dreyfus (Kevin Kline) from taking credit for their sly sleuthing?
Umberto D.
Bankrupt and lonely, an old man (Carlo Battisti) considers committing suicide. Since he has only a devoted dog and a maid (Lina Genneri) as his companions, things look bleak -- until one day when the old man's luck changes, giving him new hope. Director Vittorio De Sica's touching portrait of one man's effort to retain his pride in the face of adversity is a treasure of Italian post-war cinema.
The Believer
Henry Bean's film tells the story of Danny Balint (Ryan Gosling), a young Jewish man from New York City struggling with the conflict between his beliefs and his heritage. Balint eventually joins a neo-Nazi organization, rising up the ranks to become a leader in the white supremacy movement. The 2001 Jury Prize winner at Sundance is a psychological examination into the forces of intolerance, both on the individual and society as a whole.
The Yacoubian Building
This sprawling tapestry of modern-day Egypt weaves together multiple stories of the residents of the Yacoubian Building, a Cairo structure built in 1937 to house the city's upper crust. The most expensive Egyptian movie ever made, it's also one of the most provocative, tackling a host of taboo subjects. The film, based on the best-selling Arabic novel, features a cast of top actors from the Arab world.
http://www.netflix.com/ReviewsAndLists?prid=109360264&myprofile=y&lnkctr=fsb2mrl
The Leopard (Original Italian Version)
This classic film set in 1880s Sicily, is based on the famous Italian novel "Il Gattopardo" (written by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa) that chronicles social and political change on the island during the Risorgimento. Prince Don Fabrizio Salina (Burt Lancaster) attempts to hold onto the glory he once knew, while his nephew, Tancredi Falconeri (Alain Delon), has joined opposition forces and is being heralded as a war hero. As Falconeri begins to fall for Angelica (Claudia Cardinale), the daughter of the town's new mayor, Don Calogero Sedara (Paolo Stoppa), Salina must learn to accept his changing political status and to secure the future of his family by adhering to the principles of his family motto, "in order for things to stay the same, they will have to change."
Gigi
Leslie Caron stars as Gigi, an avant-garde French waif being groomed as the fille de joie of affluent and handsome Gaston (Louis Jourdan). Soon Gigi metamorphoses into a stunning beauty, and the head-over-heels Gaston asks for her hand. But Gigi's courtesan grandmother is aghast: No one in the family has ever considered something as plebeian as matrimony! This 1958 gem won Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director (Vincente Minnelli).
The Godfather
Director Francis Ford Coppola brings Mario Puzo's multigenerational crime saga to life in this Oscar-winning epic. When an organized crime family patriarch (Marlon Brando) barely survives an attempt on his life, his son Michael (Al Pacino) convinces his brother Sonny (James Caan) to let him take care of the would-be killers. Amid betrayals and corruption, Michael launches a campaign of bloody revenge that continues through the film's two sequels.
Upstairs, Downstairs: Entire Seasons
Thirty years before Robert Altman redefined the English drawing room drama with Gosford Park, this beloved Masterpiece Theatre series chronicled the lives and loves of the aristocratic "upstairs" Bellamy family and their loyal "downstairs" servants. In the show's fifth and final season, the Great War was over and the Roaring Twenties had arrived, giving the characters exciting new opportunities and challenges.
Ladyhawke
Phillipe Gaston (Matthew Broderick), a thief also known as the Mouse, escapes from his medieval dungeon prison and is chased by the guards of a villainous bishop. Phillipe befriends the gallant Captain Navarre (Rutger Hauer), who's been the bishop's target ever since he rescued the Lady Isabeau (Michelle Pfeiffer). But Phillipe soon learns that Navarre and Isabeau are victims of a curse that will keep them apart forever.
The King of Masks
Nearing the end of his life, Wang -- a locally renowned street performer and wizard of the venerable art of mask magic -- yearns to pass on his technique. But custom prescribes that he can only hand down his craft to a male successor. Anxious to preserve his unique art, the heirless Wang buys an impoverished 8-year-old on the black market. When the child divulges a dreaded secret, Wang faces a choice between filial love and societal tradition.
Waiting for Guffman
Community theater gets spit-roasted in this blistering mockumentary written by (and starring) Christopher Guest, who plays the ultrafey Corky St. Clair, a local theater impresario. In honor of Blaine, Mo.'s 150th anniversary, St. Clair mounts a mediocre musical tribute to the town with hopes of taking the production to Broadway. Eugene Levy costars, along with a talented ensemble cast.
Ordinary People
Everything is in its proper place in the Jarrett household -- except the past. Mary Tyler Moore won an Oscar nomination for her role as a repressed mother whose favorite son has died, leaving her with another (Timothy Hutton) she can barely tolerate. Robert Redford's first directorial effort netted four Academy Awards, including Best Director, Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for a young Hutton.
Seinfeld: Entire Seasons
See how NBC's famous show "about nothing" -- one of the most popular sitcoms of all time -- first became "must-see TV." Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) leads the Manhattan foursome that also includes frustrated George (Jason Alexander), sometimes-shrill Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and, of course, Kramer (Michael Richards), Jerry's big-haired, eccentric neighbor with a knack for unique entrances. Keep an ear peeled for your favorite catchphrases. ...
Francesco Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur: Alla Scala
This sumptuous, 1989 production of Francesco Cilea's operatic masterwork features soprano Mirella Freni in the role of Adriana Lecouvreur, a popular, 18th century, French stage star bound by love to the Count of Saxony. Regrettably for Adriana, however, he's already promised to the Princess of Bouillon, and a fiery battle of wills ensues. Gianandrea Gavazzeni directs Teatro Alla Scala's orchestra and chorus.
Jane Eyre
Adapted from Charlotte Brontë's gothic romance novel, this BBC miniseries tells the story of orphan Jane Eyre (Sian Pattenden and Zelah Clarke), whose early years are marked by mistreatment at the hands of her caretakers. Jane lands a governess job at the mysterious Mr. Rochester's (Timothy Dalton) estate, Thornfield, and is eventually drawn to the tortured man. The only series to watch!
The History Boys
Nicholas Hytner, Richard Griffiths and Frances de la Tour reprise their Tony-winning roles in this engaging film version of Alan Bennett's play chronicling a rowdy group of boys on their way to higher education. On a quest to attend either Oxford or Cambridge, the teens grapple with the intricacies of university entrance exams and admissions, ultimately learning as much about the education system as they do about academics.
Schindler's List
Steven Spielberg's Holocaust epic won seven Academy Awards (including Best Picture) and is an unforgettable testament to the possibility of human goodness. Greedy factory owner Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson) was exploiting cheap Jewish labor, but in the midst of WWII became an unlikely humanitarian, losing his fortune by helping to save 1,100 Jews from Auschwitz.
Splendor in the Grass
Young lovers Deanie Loomis (Natalie Wood) and Bud Stamper (Warren Beatty, in his big-screen debut) find their awakening sexuality at odds with their moral standards and with those of their 1920s rural Kansas community. Trying to resist their carnal urges leads to mutual heartbreak -- and to madness for the fragile Deanie. Director Elia Kazan's profile of the repercussions of pent-up pubescent lust netted an Oscar for Best Screenplay.
Tomorrow
Jackson Fentry (Robert Duvall) is a lonely Mississippi farmer whose introverted personality matches his solitary lifestyle. His wake-up call comes in the form of the pregnant Sarah Eubanks (Olga Bellin), whose husband has left her. Realizing that Sarah needs a place to stay, Fentry takes her in … and slowly falls in love with her. After she gives birth, the two are married, only to have tragedy strike a short time later.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Southern comforts abound in this classic adaptation of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Gregory Peck won an Oscar for his role as Atticus Finch, a widowed lawyer who takes on the task of defending an innocent black man (Brock Peters) against rape charges, only to wind up in a maelstrom of hate and prejudice that threatens to invade the lives of his children, Jem and Scout (Phillip Alford and Mary Badham).
51 Birch Street
Married 54 years, Mike and Mina Block were the picture of if not wedded bliss then at least rock-solid stability -- or so thought their son, documentary filmmaker Doug Block. But when his mother dies unexpectedly and his father swiftly marries his former secretary, Doug suddenly realizes there was more to his parents' union than met his eye. Turning his lens on his own family, he discovers much he never knew about the people who raised him.
The Wizard of Oz
The classic tale of Dorothy and her friends comes to life again with this animated adaptation of the beloved L. Frank Baum story. Toto, the Tin Man, Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion are all on board for whimsical adventures all the way from the tornado-laden Kansas countryside of Dorothy's home to the Wizard's sparkling Emerald City.
Topsy-Turvy
After their production of "Princess Ida" tanks, Arthur Gilbert (Allan Corduner) and William Sullivan (the wonderful Jim Broadbent) start a cold war that threatens to end their long-lasting partnership. When friends and associates work overtime to bring them back together, the result is their classic play "The Mikado." Thoughtful and winningly acted, Topsy-Turvy garnered four Academy Award nominations and won for best costume design and makeup.
Cabaret
Prewar Berlin's debauchery and turbulence is chronicled through the perspective of a British scribe (Michael York) and his comrades, among them flamboyant American nightclub entertainer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli). Existing in a morally ambiguous void, they doggedly maintain their façades as the world outside the cabaret gears for war. Director Bob Fosse uses the kitsch cabaret to reflect German society as it shifts from hedonism to Hitlerism.
Mr. Skeffington
Bette Davis earned an Oscar nod for her portrayal of a narcissistic socialite who gets her comeuppance in this bittersweet tale. To keep her embezzling brother out of jail, Fanny Trellis (Davis) weds wealthy Job Skeffington (Claude Rains) but seeks a divorce when her sibling, angry about Fanny's one-sided union, runs off to war and gets killed. Ever the coquette, Fanny takes up with a host of men … until diphtheria spoils her trademark beauty.
The Pallisers
Get caught up in this BBC drama based on the books of Victorian author Anthony Trollope. Meet Plantagenet Palliser (Phillip Latham) and Lady Glencora (Emmy Award-winner Susan Hampshire), British aristocrats whose lives Trollope aptly renders in his novels (which include Phineas Finn, The Prime Minister and The Duke's Children). The screen versions, like the novels, are rife with intrigue and deep-seated passion.
Wit
Emma Thompson stars as Vivian Bearing, a disciplined, esteemed English professor dealing with a sensitive issue -- her health. After being diagnosed with ovarian cancer, Vivian is forced to reassess her life and decide what's really important. Wit also tells the stories of the people Vivian touches, including her healthcare team. Directed by Mike Nichols and adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama by Margaret Edson.
A Shot in the Dark
When a wealthy college student (James Bush) is found hanging dead from a tree, his roommate (Charles Starrett) enlists the help of his detective father (Robert Warwick) to sift through the clues and uncover the killer. The plot thickens when the gumshoes determine that a sizable inheritance was involved. Meanwhile, an autopsy uncovers an even more startling piece of information: The boy was dead long before he was hung.
To Be and To Have
The once-acclaimed French school system is under siege, with overcrowding making it impossible for children to receive the education they deserve. But there's one place that's trying to buck the tide. This documentary by Nicolas Philibert visits a one-room schoolhouse in rural Saint-Etienne Sur Usson, where Georges Lopez teaches his 13 students, ranging in age between 3 and 10, the old-fashioned way ... with effort, attention and encouragement.
Educating Rita
This warm and witty take on the Pygmalion story stars Julie Walters as piquant hairdresser Rita, who's determined to better herself, and Michael Caine as alcoholic professor Dr. Frank Bryant, who becomes her reluctant tutor. As Rita blossoms under his tutelage, Frank also learns a few lessons about life. The romantic comedy earned a trio of BAFTA Awards (including Best Film), a pair of Golden Globes and three Oscar nominations.
The Insider
One man told the truth. Another reported the story. Both paid the price. The Insider -- a true tale about a Big Tobacco scientist (Russell Crowe) who exposed industry secrets, and the newsman (Al Pacino) who fought corporate forces that would have squelched the story -- offers a glimpse into power, media and money in America. A thought-provoking and thrilling film.
The Lives of Others
Set in 1980s East Berlin, director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's debut feature (which earned an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film) provides an exquisitely nuanced portrait of life under the watchful eye of the state police as a high-profile couple is bugged. When a successful playwright and his actress companion become subjects of the Stasi's secret surveillance program, their friends, family and even those doing the watching find their lives changed too.
It All Starts Today
Daniel, a teacher, is one of those heroes we don't often encounter: the everyday hero who fights the good fight because it's the right thing to do. Director Bertrand Tavernier provides an intimate look at one man's struggle to make a difference in his students' lives in this powerful story about real life that defines the meaning of passion and commitment and illustrates the resilience of the human spirit.
Monty Python's Life of Brian
The crown princes of British comedy are at it again -- this time, in a send-up of the life and times of Jesus Christ. Perhaps the most controversial (and offensive, to some) Python film, Life of Brian tells the tall tale of a peasant boy born the same night as the Christ child -- in an adjoining stable. Laughs mount as their lives increasingly intersect.
Normal
Roy (Tom Wilkinson), a small-town Illinois man, wildly declares after blacking out on his 25th wedding anniversary that he's convinced he's a woman trapped inside a man's body. It's up to Roy's shell-shocked wife, Irma (Jessica Lange), his kids and the entire community to come to terms with this stunning revelation. It won't be easy. Based on a hit play by Jane Anderson.
The Notebook
Based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, this drama chronicles an enduring love that withstands both war and disease. It begins in a nursing home, where a man (James Garner) arrives every day armed with a notebook from which he reads stories about a couple, Noah and Allie (played by Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams), to an unresponsive woman (Gena Rowlands). Who are the characters in the book, and why does the stranger insist on reading about them aloud?
Paper Moon
A con man (Ryan O'Neal) and his precocious "daughter" (Tatum O'Neal, in an Oscar-winning role as Best Supporting Actress) grift their way across the heartland of depression-era America in director Peter Bogdanovich's nostalgic look at the 1930s. As the two try desperately to scrounge up enough money to live on, their "father/daughter relationship" soon becomes a business partnership when they realize they need each other for survival.
Philadelphia
When attorney Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) reveals his HIV-positive status -- and his homosexuality -- to his co-workers, he soon finds himself unemployed. Seeking to sue for wrongful termination, Hanks works with the only lawyer who'll take the case: ambulance-chasing, homophobic Joe Miller (Denzel Washington). Hanks received an Oscar for his work in this Jonathan Demme-directed film -- the first major-studio picture to tackle the topic of AIDS.
Ponette
When her mother dies in a car accident, 4-year-old Ponette (Victoire Thivisol) is left physically and emotionally scarred and in the care of her grief-stricken father. Sent to live with family for a while, Ponette sullenly navigates a world made up mostly of children's faces and slowly comes to terms with her loss. Thivisol's powerful, haunting performance earned her a Best Actress award at the Venice Film Festival in 1996.
The Remains of the Day
Dutiful butler Stevens (Anthony Hopkins) is the epitome of dedication as he tends to the house of his master, Lord Darlington (James Fox). Head housekeeper Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson) tries to coax Stevens out of his staid shell, but it's only later in life -- when Stevens realizes what his silent response to his master's Nazi sympathies has cost him -- that he seeks her out. This Merchant-Ivory period drama was nominated for eight Oscars.
The Pink Panther
Bumbling French Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin) must solve the murder of a world-famous soccer coach and catch the thief who stole his priceless diamond ring in this prequel to the 1964 classic. Suspects include a gorgeous pop star (Beyoncé), a soccer player and a Chinese assassin. Can clumsy Clouseau and his partner, Ponton (Jean Reno), solve the mystery and keep Chief Dreyfus (Kevin Kline) from taking credit for their sly sleuthing?
Umberto D.
Bankrupt and lonely, an old man (Carlo Battisti) considers committing suicide. Since he has only a devoted dog and a maid (Lina Genneri) as his companions, things look bleak -- until one day when the old man's luck changes, giving him new hope. Director Vittorio De Sica's touching portrait of one man's effort to retain his pride in the face of adversity is a treasure of Italian post-war cinema.
The Believer
Henry Bean's film tells the story of Danny Balint (Ryan Gosling), a young Jewish man from New York City struggling with the conflict between his beliefs and his heritage. Balint eventually joins a neo-Nazi organization, rising up the ranks to become a leader in the white supremacy movement. The 2001 Jury Prize winner at Sundance is a psychological examination into the forces of intolerance, both on the individual and society as a whole.
The Yacoubian Building
This sprawling tapestry of modern-day Egypt weaves together multiple stories of the residents of the Yacoubian Building, a Cairo structure built in 1937 to house the city's upper crust. The most expensive Egyptian movie ever made, it's also one of the most provocative, tackling a host of taboo subjects. The film, based on the best-selling Arabic novel, features a cast of top actors from the Arab world.
WISHFUL DRINKING - CARRIE FISHER
She squeezed a lot of living into that month and a half.
(From tminsider@theatermania.com)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Carrie Fisher stars in Wishful Drinking at Berkeley Rep, the play she's penned about the days when battling hangovers occupied the bulk of her life (February 8-March 30). Princess Leia at age 19, manic depression and alcoholism in between, Elizabeth Taylor as a stepmom, and Paul Simon as an ex-husband, Fisher's life story has had more twists than a martini."
(From tminsider@theatermania.com)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Carrie Fisher stars in Wishful Drinking at Berkeley Rep, the play she's penned about the days when battling hangovers occupied the bulk of her life (February 8-March 30). Princess Leia at age 19, manic depression and alcoholism in between, Elizabeth Taylor as a stepmom, and Paul Simon as an ex-husband, Fisher's life story has had more twists than a martini."
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