Doc Watch: Tina (2021)

Watched:  03/29/2021

Format:  HBOmax

Viewing:  First

Decade:  2020's

Director:  Daniel Lindsay, T.J. Martin

I've never been a hardcore Tina Turner fan, but like everyone of my generation I am familiar with her work, and have some idea of her pre Private Dancer life through cultural osmosis.  The first one of her albums I ever purchased was greatest hits collection, Simply the Best because I *loved* "Simply the Best" as a song, and figured "can't hurt to own the greatest hits".  And I have no timeline of how I came to really understand Tina Turner's story.  I *do* remember watching the video for "What's Love Got To Do With It?" and my parents sort of watching in amazement that (a) Tina Turner was on MTV and (b) their kids, 9 and 11, were like "this Tina Turner seems cool".  And then my folks saying something about a creep of an ex-husband.

And, we lost our minds over how cool she was in Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome.  And she is.  Go back and watch it.    

I confess, I never had much affinity for biopics - 2 hours is not enough time to show a life, let alone how botched the movies tend to be vis-a-vis actual facts (which are always more interesting than the invention of the movie) - and I wasn't super interested in watching someone dressed up as Tina Turner get beat up for two hours.  But hearing about the movie is how I came to understand exactly how bad Ike Turner had been.  But I've still never seen What's Love Got to Do With It.

It seems I'm not alone in this opinion.  

Tina (2021) is a roughly two hour doc that uses intervies, original and archival, that charts Tina Turner's course from abandoned child in Nutbush, Tennessee to living in Zurch with her dedicated husband.  And it's a goddamn shattering ride.  And, as it turns out, possibly Turner's final word on her life to the public.  

PODCAST: "Paddington 2" (2017) - a Signal Watch Canon episode w/ JAL and Ryan

Watched:  03/22/2021

Format:  Amazon

Viewing:  First

Decade:  2010's

Director:  Paul King

For more ways to listen

Justin returns to talk a movie everyone *should* agree on, the gargantuan movie about a very small and polite bear. It bears some discussion what makes it work and what makes it stand out in a crowded field of children and all-ages film. Have a good cry with two grown adults talking about everyone's favorite fellow from darkest Peru.

The Signal Watch PodCast · 142: "Paddington 2" (2017) - A Canon film discussion with JAL and Ryan

Music:

Winsdor Gardens - Dario Marianelli, Paddington 2 OST

Rain on the Roof  - Hugh Grant, Paddington 2 OST (originally Sondheim, Follies)

Signal Watch Canon:

The Signal Watch PodCast · The Signal Watch Canon

80's Watch Party Watch: The Secret of My Success (1987)

Watched:  03/26/2021

Format: Amazon Watch Party

Viewing:  Unknown

Decade: so, so 1980's

Director:  Herbert Ross

I have no affinity for The Secret of My Success (1987).  I saw it upon its theatrical release in 1987, where I was carded as a 12 year old entering a PG-13 movie.  My friend's dad had to come into the box office and tell them it was fine.  So, thanks, Mr. P.

I also remember both the seduction of "Brantley" and the immediate revelation he'd been seduced by a distant sorta relative.  And the use of Yello's "Oh Yeah".*

And, of course, Helen Slater, who I didn't realize was Helen Slater until college or so.  And - the ruse which is the core of the film, which I thought I understood but missed something.  But I am here to tell you here in 2021 AD, I do not understand what Brantley was doing.

Friday Jamie Birthday Party Selection: Secret of My Success

 

Forewarning:  this one costs a few bucks to watch, so we'll understand if you bow out

Jamie puts up with A LOT, so if this is what she wants to do for her movie selection, we're fine with that.

This was the movie I assumed was gonna by filthy when I showed up at the movie theater to see a PG-13 movie and they *carded me*.  It's kinda not dirty, is crazy 1980's in many ways, and - most importantly - co-stars Helen Slater in business attire.

The no-nonsense shoulder pads that say "I can do a merger or take out Jim McMahon"

• Day:  Friday 03/26 - Today
• Time:  8:30 Central

Link here for Michael J. Fox

Comic Watch: X2 - X-Men United (2003)

Watched:  03/25/2021

Format:  Disney+

Viewing:  Unknown

Decade:  2000's

Director:  Bryan Singer

Until Logan came out a few years back, I'd argue X2: X-Men United (2003) was the *best* X-Men movie, which may be a sign of how quickly I felt the franchise devolved, but it does wonders to build on the original, expand the world, mine the premise for narrative gold, and set us up for both continuing X-Men films and potential Wolverine spin-offs.  

Jamie was asking me if the movie was based on stuff from the comics, and while I could definitively say it was, I also don't know exactly when and who wrote them.  I didn't get to Uncanny X-Men until around issue 170, with the kind of third incarnation of the X-Men, but - and here's my argument to the Big 2 why you just go ahead and keep on your Chris Claremonts as long as you can - all of the stuff from those stories 50-100 issues prior still had impact in what I was reading years after the fact.  The writer knew and remembered the important stuff, and it was woven into the character's lives and informed how they behaved and thought about things. *

Jessica Walter Merges With the Infinite

 

Jessica Walter has slipped the bonds of our existence and gone on to be amazing in another dimension.  

We're stunned and heartbroken at this news.  

RIP to a queen.

Doc Watch: Operation Varsity Blues - The College Admissions Scandal

Watched:  03/22/2021

Format:  Netflix

Viewing:  First

Decade:  2020's

Director:  Chris Smith

Full disclosure:  My current role is in IT management at a major American university, and part of my portfolio includes Admissions.  I haven't worked for this office very long, just about a year and a half.  But I do interface continually with the folks who process, review and make admissions decisions.  

If you followed the story of actresses Lori Loughlin or Felicity Huffman as they were exposed and charged with participating in, essentially, a massively scaled bribery scandal in which coaches provided entrance to kids as walk-ons to their teams in exchange for cash, you know the broad strokes of what broke in the news back in 2019.  

Happy Birthday, Ms. Crawford

 happy birthday to Ms. Crawford, born this date in 1904.

"Well, That Was Delightful" Watch: Paddington (2014)

Watched:  03/21/2021

Format:  Amazon prime

Viewing:  First

Decade:  2010's

Director:  Paul King

We're doing a podcast on Paddington 2 in a bit, so I expect we'll discuss this movie and Paddington in general at that time.  

This movie is fantastic, and you should watch it.

Shatner turns 90!

Happy 90th to the man who taught me it's all about hanging with your buds, having great hair and cruising around in a cool ride to meet girls and get into scrapes with the locals.  

Also, he was on Star Trek.

He's my Captain, and I salute him.  Happy birthday, Mr. Shatner!