Category: Stu’s Reviews

Film Review: Love and Mercy

th5This is wonderful- film- go see it now. We drove over an hour to Dartmouth in  the rain to make it happen (and to  avoid the local offerings of Ted, Max and Entourage-call us film snobs) I’ve been waiting for years for someone to adequately tell the amazing story of the great Brian Wilson(Beach Boys) –and this does the job. Starting with the making of Pet Sounds and Smile into the eighties and going back to the beginnings of Brian’s struggles with mental illness –this story is beautifully told. Full disclosure- in spite of Lennon/McCartney, Dylan and Neil Young- I believe Brain Wilson to be the genius composer of our generation and of the last half of the 20th century-bar none. It comes alive here as he composes Good Vibrations both from musical genius and the demon voices in his head. Dano and Cusack are amazing as the younger and older Wilson (watch Cusack nail his walk and posture and Dano sing for the heavens), Giamatti is the definition of evil as the control freak shrink- Eugene Landy and Elizabeth Banks is everyone’s wet dream as a true savior. And, the music is phenomenal. Must see film.

Genre:   Film

Grade: A

Notable People: Paul Dano, John Cusack, Paul Giamatti,  Elizabeth Banks, Directed by Bill Pohlad

Book Review: Hitman

th4Block is prolific-has written over 50 novels in about six different series (Matthew Scudder is the most famous )- mostly in the mystery genre. And he’s good at it. This one is out of the variety of series he does and is a standalone and mighty well done. Keller is a hit man with a conscience and a therapist. Leads a pretty normal life in NYC except when he goes off to do murder for hire. Everywhere he goes he has major fantasies about moving to. Quite witty and with a good sense of place- Block is really good at what he does. A quick and entertaining summer read.

Genre:   Novel

Grade: A-

Notable People: Lawrence Block

Music Review: Boz Scaggs “A Fool To Care”

th6Boz Scaggs…Really!??! I have idea where he has been for most of last 20 years or so- but this may  be the best work he has done since his time in the Paul Butterflied Blues Band. Less pop than his seventies smashes and with a real blues flavor. Bonnie Raitt and Lucinda Williams do major guest shots as well. Check out Boz on the Curtis Mayfield classic, “I’m so Proud”…white man soul here. Good for him, resurrected and better than ever. Definitely worth checking out.

Genre:   Album

Grade: A-

Notable People: Boz Scaggs

Title:  A Fool to Care

 

Music Review: Leonard Cohen “Can’t Forget”

index8Leonard, Leonard, Leonard….never too much Leonard. This is the 6th or 7th live album release for his endless world tour, which would seem a bit much- if everyone one of them was not a tour de force. Leonard sings in French here, he tells little funny stories, he sings the blues…what a mensch. Is he not the world’s favorite octogenarian? And the band has no parallel for touring bands, including the great, great Javier Mas, on all things stringed. The set here is actually all from sounds checks in pre-concert, but you’d never know it; almost all the songs are ones that have not before appeared on the recent live albums and some are new, but wait until you hear this blues- out version of the “Tower of Song” Just go get it- it’s Leonard Cohen!

Genre:   Album

Grade: A

Notable People: Leonard Cohen and his wonderful traveling band

Title:  Can’t Forget- A Souvenir of the Grand Tour

 

Novel Reviews – The Light Between Oceans

Stu’s Reviews #187

Genre: Novel

Grade: A-

Notable People: M.L. Steadman

Title: The Light Between Oceans

Review – Brilliant first novel by this Australian author. Set in remote western Australia after the first work war, a sweeping 50 year tale of life as lighthouse keeper and a wild ride of beauty and trauma. Very well written with excellent historical base. I was really moved by this book an sat in tears at the end. Highly recommended.

Film Reviews- Boondog Saints

Genre: Film

Grade: B with a twist
Notable People: Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flannery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco, Directed by Troy Duffy
Title: Boondog Saints

Review – so- apparently this is some kind of cult classic amongst a certain set. Had never heard of it until my kids gave it to me for my birthday. Took several months to watch it (it’s a 19999 out on blue ray-and on Netflix), and it’s pretty weird. To very Irish twin brothers in south Boston become murdering avengers of evil- along with an Italian sidekick. The dialog is weird, the cinematography is weird, the acting is over the top…and Dafoe is absolutely nuts….but it’s hard not to like. They all seemed to have really good time making this film and it does have a certain urban kitsch to it that is hard to resist…almost a Boston version of Pulp Fiction- I think the director must be a big Tarantino fan. Not a bad way to spend an evening- it’s a B movie that is in the band width of so bad it’s good.

Fiction Review- Shots Fired- Stories

Genre: Stories

Grade: A
Notable People: C.J. Box
Title: Shots Fired

Review – as you all may recall, I am a big fan of the lost art of short stories and seek out those who really master this oft-forgotten art form. I have ben lucky to find a number of really good practitioners of this art in last few years and Box is high amongst them. This set of stories, all set in modern day Wyoming are wonderfully written small works of art. Box does Wyoming like Hemingway did the UP and Irving does New England…loves the place and lets us learn how to love it. Four of the stories are related to his Joe Pickett series for those of you who have dabbled in that. My favorite is about a faux Shoshone Indian who goes to Paris to be in wild west show because French woman want to have his wild – nature babies. This is a good read- easily done in small segments- perfect for bedtime

Film Review- Boondocks Saints

Genre: Film

Grade: B with a twist
Notable People: Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flannery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco, Directed by Troy Duffy
Title: Boondog Saints

Review – so- apparently this is some kind of cult classic amongst a certain set. Had never heard of it until my kids gave it to me for my birthday. Took several months to watch it (it’s a 19999 out on blue ray-and on Netflix), and it’s pretty weird. To very Irish twin brothers in south Boston become murdering avengers of evil- along with an Italian sidekick. The dialog is weird, the cinematography is weird, the acting is over the top…and Dafoe is absolutely nuts….but it’s hard not to like. They all seemed to have really good time making this film and it does have a certain urban kitsch to it that is hard to resist…almost a Boston version of Pulp Fiction- I think the director must be a big Tarantino fan. Not a bad way to spend an evening- it’s a B movie that is in the band width of so bad it’s good.

Novel Review- The English German Girl

Genre: Novel

Grade: A-
Notable People: Jake Wallis Simons
Title: The English German Girl

Review –Very interesting book by noted British journalist that chronicles a German Jewish family’s experience in Berlin starting in the late 1930s and through the rise of Nazi power. As expected, a rather heartbreaking tale that I found pretty compelling. Not a happy ending, as is the norm for tales of this time and place. Pretty well written but not a great writer, but the material and the story make it more than worthwhile.

Film Review- Ex Machina

Genre: Film

Grade: A-/B+
Notable People: Dohmnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander, Oscar Isaac, Directed by Alex Garland
Title: Ex Machina

Review –Full disclosure- I generally do not like Sci-Fi, but this is an interesting movie. Garland’s directorial debut may be the most complicated film yet made about artificial intelligence, featuring a “dummy” ingénue. Very little in the way of bells and whistles- mostly just a mind blower with a plot that is quite challenging. A much more visceral nuance of the film Her- taking the concept a big step further. The entire film takes place ominously in as secluded mountain fortress and is basically acted by four performers. The acting is very good and Oscar Isaac….oh my. Who is this guy? I really liked him in Llewelyn Davis; then saw him in A Most Dangerous Year and did not recognize it could be the same actor until I saw him on the credits….which happened again with this film. The man is really talented. This one is well worth seeing.