Radioactive plus Short Takes on suggestions for TCM cable offerings and other cinematic topics
You Turn Me On I’m a Radio … active Isotope
(Line extrapolated from a song on Joni Mitchell’s 1972 album For the Roses using
radio waves as an allusion to romance, not radiation, but radio and X-rays are both
contained in the electromagnetic spectrum so let’s not be too picky, shall we?)
Reviews and Comments by Ken Burke
I invite you to join me on a regular basis to see how my responses to current cinematic offerings compare to the critical establishment, which I’ll refer to as either the CCAL (Collective Critics at Large) when they’re supportive or the OCCU (Often Cranky Critics Universe) when they go negative,
Radioactive (Marjane Satrapi)
rated PG-13
Opening Chatter (no spoilers): As specified in my last posting I wasn’t sure how much time/space I’d devote to reviews of new-streaming-product this week because of the distraction I might have from the official opening of what in 2020 amounts (or maybe just attempts) to be Major League Baseball’s season; well, sure enough, once my Oakland Athletics finally took to the field (accompanied by 5,100 cardboard cutouts of fans who donated money to charity to have their likenesses put into seats around the stadium, with crowd noise, PA announcements, and other audio enhancements from past seasons also added to the empty-stadium—except for players, umpires, broadcasters, and a few support personnel) I’ve devoted a good bit of time over the previous days to what may be a very short experiment given how many members of the Miami Marlins team have now tested positive for COVID-19, so now the whole concept of restarting the sport this year hangs in the balance of the next few days probably, as I cheer my A’s on to a 3-3 record, tied for first place (!) for now in the American League West Division; therefore, I haven’t had much extra time for watching independent cinema I might not have bothered with anyway had it been playing in a public theater. However, Radioactive, a somewhat-Expressionistic (if not fully Surreal in a couple of scenes) biography of science-giant Marie Curie seemed like a good investment (although critical reaction’s been mixed) because I wanted to know more about her life, I’ve admired several past performances by Rosamund Pike, and I was willing to put my faith in my local San Francisco Chronicle-critic/enthusiast as to how I’d likely be well-rewarded for my investment. Overall, I was, although I’ve since found hesitations about the value of this film from women whose opinions I trust, including my wife. Nevertheless, if you’re already an Amazon Prime subscriber or wish to cash in on their 30-day-free-trial offer I think you’d find Radioactive—with its multiple focuses on Marie Curie’s struggle to be taken seriously as a scientist in the late-19th/early 20th-centuries, her significant discoveries along with husband Pierre of new chemical elements and the phenomenon of radiation, plus some brief allusions to the positive/negative impact of radiation well into our own time—is quite an interesting premise to explore, along with what could be considered an Oscar-nomination-worthy-performance from Pike. Also, in the Short Takes section I’ll offer suggestions for some choices on the Turner Classic Movies channel (but too much extra text for line-justified-layout like you see here [Related Links stuff at each posting’s end is similarly-ragged], at least to be done by this burned-out-BlogSpot-drone—oh, tedious software! [which fought me more than before this week, as with that giant space above just below the photo]) along with my marvelous dose of industry-related-trivia.
Here’s the trailer for Radioactive:
(Use the full screen button in the image’s lower right to enlarge it; activate
that same button or use the “esc” keyboard key to return to normal size.)
If you can abide plot spoilers read on, but this blog’s intended for those who’ve seen the film or want to save some $. To help any of you who want to learn more details yet avoid important plot-reveals I’ll identify any give-away sentences/sentence-clusters like this:
⇒The first and last words will be noted with arrows and red.⇐ OK, continue on if you prefer.
What Happens: (As with any docudrama, what's on screen may not fully—or even accurately—reflect the historical record we have of the person or events being depicted; if you wish a more complete understanding of the life of Marie Curie you can consult several sources including the Encyclopedia Britannica and the Nobel Prize organization—but if you really want details, go here. So, in this section of my review when I want to add something I see as relevant but not included in the film’s text I’ll just add it [in brackets].) Maria Sklodowska (Rosamund Pike) [born in Warsaw, Poland in 1867] comes to Paris [1891, earns a degree in physics in 1893 at the University of Paris—the Sorbonne], changes her name to Marie, works in a large laboratory run by Professor Gabriel Lippmann (Simon Russell Beale), lives with her sister, Bronia (Sian Brooke) [married to a physician, but we see no trace of him except for a baby also sharing the small quarters with the sisters], in 1893 accidently bumps into Pierre Curie (Sam Riley) on the street, moves quickly past his attempts at compliments on her work and small talk [actually introduced by a mutual colleague], runs afoul of Lippmann’s committee when she requests (demands, really) more lab space, is turned down by every male scientist she visits trying to share a lab, finally relents to accept Curie’s offer as she admits they’re working in similar directions, hence he could be a useful collaborator (even as she asserts her brilliance, independent intentions, and—briefly—rejects any romantic interest he might have) which ultimately becomes their norm in both private and public life (even though they do marry in 1895; she warms up, as we see a passionate scene in the countryside as they swim naked in a lake, make love on shore, share loving nights in their bedroom—resulting in daughter Irène [1897]).
Over the next few years the Curies do extensive work extending Wilhelm Roentgen’s discovery [1895] of X-rays and the radiation emitted by uranium (Marie explains their theories at a small dinner party, using the analogy—illustrated through animation for us—of a grape turning itself into wine, releasing energy in the process; I didn't fully follow the science/chemistry explained at various times during this film, nor do I think such understanding’s essential to appreciating the larger context of the story presented on screen), during which time Pierre’s granted a professorship in physics at the University of Paris, these dedicated scientists discover 2 new elements—polonium [named for Poland], radium—along with the release of energy from a decaying atom, radiation, leading to a joint Nobel Prize in Physics in December 1903 [along with Henri Becquerel] which Pierre goes to Stockholm alone to accept (Marie'd recently birthed daughter Ève, chose not to travel, didn’t seem that overwhelmed by the award relative to her desire to continue pressing forward with their research [actually, Ève was born Dec. 1904; neither parent went to Sweden for their joint speech until 1905]).
By this time, Pierre’s becoming ill (from radiation poisoning), yet in his acceptance speech [within the film, although it's fictionalized] he echoes Alfred Nobel’s (inventor of dynamite, sponsor of the awards) belief that new discoveries will ultimately benefit humankind even if some use these breakthroughs for criminal purposes. When he returns home, though, he finds Marie bitter that he didn’t insist she accompany him (even though, seemingly, he had to demand the Nobel committee include her in the award, not just him), but his increasing illness brings about her immediate support until one night as he’s staggering home, reeling from the radiation he falls under an oncoming horse carriage, dying from a skull fracture. While I’ve tried to be chronological with this summary so far for clarity, you should know the actual film begins in 1934 as Marie collapses in her lab, herself dying of radiation poisoning, so actually everything we see prior to that officially is a series of flashbacks; however, there are also flashforwards at times editorializing on positive or negative aspects of radiation: The first is in Cleveland, OH, in 1957 where Dr. Jenkins (Demetri Tumbridge) assures an anxious father his hospital’s new, huge radiation device will be greatly beneficial in reducing/curing his son’s deadly tumors; on the other hand, we also get scenes of the atomic bomb dropping on Hiroshima in 1945 and a crowd of spectators in 1961 naïvely watching a bomb blast from a distance in Nevada as if some form of entertainment, then there’s another one in 1986 where the nuclear-reactor-meltdown in Chernobyl spews death and disease into the surrounding area. Back in the early-20th-century, life goes on for widowed-Marie who takes Pierre’s position at the U. of Paris, has a scandalous affair with younger colleague, Paul Langevin (Aneurin Barnard)—estranged from his wife—which turns many in the French public against her (Polish ancestry didn’t help, nor did the false charge of being Jewish [actually, lapsed-Catholic]), though she got another Nobel Prize in 1911, for Chemistry [first woman to get this honor in any category, only woman to win in 2 different ones, only person to win in 2 different science fields—Linus Pauling won for Chemistry, also Peace].
⇒As France moves into WW I teenage Irène’s* (Anya Taylor-Joy) working at a hospital where amputation is carried out too frequently on wounded soldiers so she convinces Marie to work with her to get portable X-ray machines into field ambulances, initially denied by the government even with Marie’s offer to donate her 2 solid-gold-medals as partial payment but accepted when she threatens to go to the press with her offer [actually, the French National Bank refused the medals, but she was able to use her Nobel prize money to buy war bonds], so many soldiers’ lives and limbs are saved by these devices, along with her use of radon gas (given off by radium) to sterilize infected tissue. As our story closes we’re back in 1934 where Marie has a dying vision of herself offering comfort in a ward to some various injured (actually dead) victims of radiations, bombs, etc. until she’s joined by Pierre, ready to be with her now in the afterlife (not the half-life of radioactive materials).⇐
*Later (1926) Irène marries Frédéric Joliot; even later (1935) they’ll share a Nobel of their own in Chemistry for finding the process of creating artificial radioactivity, turning one element into another by irradiating stable isotopes with alpha particles (helium nuclei)—not that I fully followed that, either.
So What? Given how comparatively little recognition’s been given to women for their many achievements, with discoveries either ignored in patriarchal (or misogynist) societies, hidden away in family traditions, or falsely claimed by husbands, rulers, government/academic entities, it’s useful to have a film dedicated to celebrating a woman’s great accomplishments, even a woman already well-lauded as Marie Curie, showing the fierce determination she exhibited against the sexist attitudes of her time (also the first female faculty member at the prestigious Sorbonne), yet Radioactive’s dismissed by many reviewers (more details in my next section), its only saving grace being Pike’s emphatic performance. So, with curious intent I looked over the reviews of some female critics I admire/trust, finding a range of cautious (at best) support. Leah Greenblatt from Entertainment Weekly says: “Riley's gentle, steady presence lends ballast to Pike's portrayal of a woman so prickly and ferociously driven that even her own child (Anya Taylor-Joy) often behaves less like a daughter than a wrangler. Though in the end, it's hard not to feel that Curie herself would have wished for more rigor in Radioactive's formula — a film that, for all its ambition and force of feeling, only begins to let the light in.” Manohla Dargis of the New York Times is a bit more supportive: “I wish that Satrapi had cut loose more boldly with her colors and hallucinatory visions. ‘Radioactive’ is more provocative and satisfying than the average waxworks, but Satrapi’s visual strategies also point to the even more fully adventurous movie that could have been. Even so, it pulls you in and sometimes knocks you sideways, [...] illustrating the terrors that Curie’s discoveries led to, a reminder that this isn’t just about one life but many. Bluntly effective and dialectical, these interludes reinforce one of the movie’s refrains: science is invariably political and, in the right hands, can be a force for good and, in the wrong, a weapon of evil.” In mild contrast, Amy Nicholson in Variety goes further in praise: “As ‘Radioactive’ grapples with the repercussions of inventing a dangerously unstable nucleus that can both cure cancer and cause it, Satrapi collapses a century of innovation and destruction […] into a flat timeline that Curie can see right through as though looking at an x-ray, even walking through a Russian hospital in 1986 to kiss a dying firefighter on the forehead. In those moments of stylistic imagination, the film glows.” Supportive prose, yet in overall-restrained-reviews.
But, speaking for those not so thrilled is Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post: “The blunt, episodic nature of ‘Radioactive’ mirrors the pane-by-pane flow of a typical graphic novel. Despite Satrapi’s best efforts to smooth out the story and imbue it with depth and theatrical interest, the story can’t overcome some of its most unwieldy structural flaws. There’s no doubt that ‘Radioactive’ tells an engrossing and inspiring story; it just might be that its heroine was always too hot to handle.” Actually, Radioactive’s adapted from a graphic novel by MacArthur “Genius Grant” winner, Lauren Redniss; maybe an odd choice for a biography, but I’ve never read it, won’t comment further.
As far as the film and Marie Curie’s actual history are concerned, though, you might be interested in reading this comparison between film and facts, which would tell you Maria’s mother, Bronislawa Sklodowska, died of tuberculosis when her child was just 10 (shown in the film via sad flashback) but there’s no evidence the older Marie refused to enter a hospital to see equipment Pierre felt would facilitate their lab work nor later to observe WW I amputees Irène needed to show her mother as evidence of soldiers being brutalized even after they’d left the battlefield. This short article also makes note of scenes where fascinated-Pierre drags Marie to a séance-of-sorts as spiritualist Eusapia Palladino (Federica Fracassi) claims to use the new-found-curiosity of radium-radiation to stimulate ectoplasm of spirits to appear as with an image of Beethoven on a photographic plate; seemingly, Pierre was enthralled with such a possibility while Marie dismissed it as non-scientific hucksterism (although, in the film, after his death she grieves for Pierre so desperately she even begs dancer Loie Fuller [more on her at the end of the next section]), to bring her to another Eusapia-quasi-spiritual-event only to learn the woman’s now dead herself. While this article doesn’t mention those odd immediate-post-discovery-phase-of-radiation-curiosities in 1890s French popular culture, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn such things as glowing, irradiated cigarettes were actual items then (I haven’t found any mention of such yet, but there is radioactivity in contemporary tobacco—as reported by one branch of the Environmental Protection Agency not neutered by the Trump Administration [so far!])—to be legitimately concerned about just as the discovery of radiation back then led to the hopeful regression of cancer through tumor-shrinkage but also carried the curse of death when not used with proper precautions, taking its toll on some who hoped the Curies’ discoveries would extend rather than terminate life, even as these unknowing, unprotected scientists fell victim to their own radical discoveries. Ultimately, it would seem there’s a lot in Radioactive to be intrigued by, especially the depiction of this determined, often-legitimately-sour-woman, but even my fiercely-feminist-wife, Nina, agrees with Hornaday about the obviousness of certain aspects of this film (“[…] we know what’s to come when she and Pierre come down with coughs they can’t quite shake.”) and the distancing-attitudes of Marie, making it difficult to fully empathize with her (“[…] Pike once again dispels any natural vanity to bear down on a character who might be admirable, even heroic, but it rarely likable.”); oddly enough, I was more taken by this film than Nina who (like many critics) found Marie Curie and her surrounding filmic-narrative to be more off-putting than enhancing.
Bottom Line Final Comments: Specifically, the CCAL critics are tending toward their OCCU manifestation regarding Radioactive, with the reviews at Rotten Tomatoes rising only to the 64% positive level while the usually-more-stingy-scribes at Metacritic offer merely a 56% average score (more details in the Related Links section much farther below). Despite this tepid level of encouragement, I’ll admit I was finally pulled into making this my choice of the week from a few other possibilities by the high praise of my local critical-guru, Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle, who encouraged me (Nina, initially as well) with “[Pike often stars in] films about dynamic, driven women in the grip of obsessions and forces they cannot control […] It’s come to a point that, if Rosamund Pike is in a movie, it’s at least worth a look.”* For me, it made quite a nice look (thus, for this time at least, I won’t find something snide to say about LaSalle because I agree with his overall interest in this film), even if some women whose opinions I respect (especially Nina) weren’t as taken with it as I was (although I admit Radioactive tries to weave so much together it risks losing its audience at times); I’ll let Peter Travers of Rolling Stone speak to my reaction (I’m sure he’s honored): “Banish the dull images of test tubes and musty lecture halls when considering Radioactive […] the historical drama would be a dutiful thing, indeed, if it merely ticked off a list of Marie’s accomplishments […] Pike is having none of that — her performance as the headstrong Marie feels electro-charged. The same sparks run through the direction of Marjane Satrapi, who knows how to energize screen biography; […] by thrusting Maris into the continuing repercussions of her discovery, Radioactive creates something refreshingly untamed.” Well, maybe I’m not quite that fired up about this film, but I still see it as a worthwhile-watch even if the physics possibly eludes you.
* Another aspect of this film worth a look (if you’re already an Amazon Prime subscriber or want to take advantage of their 30-day-free-trial) is a scene you’ll see in roughly the first ½-hour (at most) of Loie Fuller’s (Drew Jacoby) “fire dance” where she’s in a flowing white dress, twirls around as vibrant colors are projected on her from spotlights. It’s beautiful just in itself but also reminds me of a major-award-winning-performance from a Finnish artist at an international media festival I used to be the Head Judge of where a dancer did the same, illuminated by various images from slide projectors. That was mesmerizing years ago; the concept works equally well now even in this more limited form.
So, if that’s all I (and my accomplices) have to say about Radioactive I’d better close out with my usual wrap-up-tactic of a Musical Metaphor, this time Jackson Browne’s “Doctor, My Eyes" (from his 1972 self-named, debut album) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0GhjlmlEwQ (from a live 2010 concert) where his lyrics speak to me of Marie Curie’s fierce passion/personal heartaches as shown in retrospect in this film: “Doctor, my eyes have seen the years And the slow parade of tears without crying Now I want to understand I have done all that I could To see the evil and the good without hiding You must help me if you can […] I’ve been waiting to awaken from these dreams […] I never noticed them until I got this feeling That it’s later than it seems.” Yet, before I go, I can’t resist also giving you Bob Dylan’s "Absolutely Sweet Marie" (from his 1966 Blonde on Blonde album; lyrics below the YouTube screen or just use the CC button on the lower right of that video screen if you want to sing along) because its sarcastic attitude toward another Marie (could be like Antoinette, given her reputation) feels to me like how Prof. Lippmann and other scientific authorities of Marie Curie’s time saw her: “Well, anybody can be just like me, obviously But then, now again, not too many can be like you, fortunately […] But to live outside the law, you must be honest I know you always say that you agree Alright so where are you tonight, sweet Marie?” Only Pierre (and later, Paul) could answer that last inquiry, although the academic authorities of her time always had plenty of questions put to Madame Curie; nevertheless, she always answered with her work, not her words.
SHORT TAKES
Suggestions for TCM cablecasts
(This image from Giant should be in color but it’s the best overall example I could find.)
At least until the pandemic subsides Two Guys also want to encourage you to consider movies you might be interested in that don’t require subscriptions to Netflix, Amazon Prime, similar Internet platforms (we may well be stuck inside for longer than those 30-day-free-initial-offers), or premium-tier-cable-TV-fees. While there are a good number of video networks offering movies of various sorts (mostly broken up by commercials), one dependable source of fine cinematic programming is Turner Classic Movies (available in lots of basic-cable-packages) so I’ll be offering suggestions of possible choices for you running from Thursday afternoon of the current week (I usually get this blog posted by early Thursday mornings) on through Thursday morning of the following week. All times are U.S. Eastern Daylight so if you see something of interest please verify actual show time in your area for the day listed. These recommendations are my particular favorites (no matter when they’re on, although some early-day-ones might need to be recorded, watched later), but there’s considerably more to pick from you could like better; feel free to peruse their entire schedule here.
Thursday July 30, 2020
10:45 PM The Birds (Alfred Hitchcock, 1963) Socialite (Tippi Hedren) and lawyer (Rod Taylor) meet in a San Francisco pet store, meet up again a bit north in Bodega Bay, attracted but hesitant. Soon mysterious occurrences begin in this area involving various birds which escalate to direct, deadly attacks on humans with no clear explanation of why this is happening. Other stars include Jessica Tandy, Suzanne Pleshette, and Veronica Cartwright. A creepy, effective psychological horror movie.
Friday July 31, 2020
1:00 PM How the West Was Won (John Ford, Henry Hathaway & George Marshall, 1962) Narrated by Spencer Tracy, epic (2 hrs. 44 min.) 4 generations of a family move from NY to CA (1839-1889; Ford directs only the Civil War segment) encountering countless difficulties along the way. Filled with stars including James Stewart, Debbie Reynolds, Karl Malden, Gregory Peck, Andy Devine, John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Eli Wallach. Made for 3-projector Cinerama process, format may be too wide for some TV screens. Won Oscars for Best Original Screenplay, Film Editing, & Sound.
Saturday August 1, 2020
10:00 PM Double Indemnity (Billy Wilder, 1944) Most marvelous film noir co-written by Wilder and Raymond Chandler about a scheming housewife (Barbara Stanwyck) working with a clearly shady insurance salesman (Fred McMurray) to kill her husband, collect a big payout, but a claims adjuster (Edward G. Robinson) smells a rat so the deadly plot begins to unravel, betrayals increase (inspired Body Heat [Lawrence Kasdan, 1981] as a sort of glorious remake several unsettled decades later).
Sunday August 2, 2020
12:00 AM Meet John Doe (Frank Capra, 1941) A fired newspaper reporter (Barbara Stanwyck) concocts a fictional letter from “John Doe,” threatening suicide on Christmas Eve because of social unrest; popular response causes editor (James Gleason) to hire her back along with a homeless guy (Gary Cooper) to portray Doe, leading to nation seeing him as hero calling out society’s ills even as he knows the whole premise is a fake just to sell newspapers, leading “Doe” to plan actual suicide.
Monday August 3, 2020
12:00 AM Giant (George Stevens, 1956) Another epic story of the West (3 hrs. 21 min.) but a contemporary plot where the owner of a huge west Texas ranch (Rock Hudson) goes East to buy a horse, ends up also with a wife (Elizabeth Taylor) who has more supportive attitudes toward their Mexican workers. His older sister Luz (Mercedes McCambridge) dies, leaves a small plot to a local rounder (James Dean) who finds oil on his land, gets quickly rich, continues over the years to bedevil the main family. Oscar for Best Director (plus 9 more nominations), Dean’s last role before his car-crash death. For the time and location, a surprising ongoing theme of emerging social tolerance.
8:00 PM The Lady from Shanghai (Orson Welles, 1948) Welles, due to internal-industry concern about his allusions to William Randolph Hearst in Citizen Kane (1941), never truly had control over his later projects including this one where the climatic scene in a funhouse hall of mirrors was cut from a 20-min. tour de force down to just 3 min. What’s left here is still fascinating starring Welles and soon-to-be-ex-wife Rita Hayworth in a tale of murder, intended murder, double-crosses, intrigue.
10:00 PM Gilda (Charles Vidor, 1946) While she had quite a career otherwise this is the role defining Rita Hayworth’s screen image as probably the most voluptuous, desirable woman of the 1940s. A small-time, crooked gambler (Glenn Ford) comes to Buenos Aires, becomes the manager of a casino, but when the owner (George Macready) suddenly takes a wife (Hayworth) we soon come to understand she has a past with the gambler which leads first to hatred, then to a rekindled romance.
Wednesday August 5, 2020
10:00 PM On the Town (Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, 1949) Adapted from 1944 Broadway musical and Jerome Robbins’ 1944 Fancy Free ballet, 3 sailors (Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly, Jules Munshin) on 24-hr. shore leave in NYC connect with women (Betty Garrett, Vera-Ellen, Ann Miller). Unusual for an MGM star showcase of the time for filming some scenes on location in NYC; a financial and critical success at the time, won Oscar for Best Music—Scoring of a Musical Picture.
If you’d like your own PDF of the rating/summary of this week's reviews, suggestions for TCM cablecasts, links to Two Guys info click this link to access then save, print, or whatever you need.
Other Cinema-Related Stuff: More items here: (1) AMC Theaters delay reopening again; (2) Mulan opening postponed indefinitely; (3) Golden Globe awards set for Feb. 28, 2021; (4) Christopher Nolan's Tenet to open internationally on Aug. 26, 2020, then in U.S. Sept. 3, 2020; (5) Regal Cinemas to reopen in late Aug. 2020; (6) Asia box-office drops 92%; (7) Even when theaters are open few show up; (8) Universal and AMC agree to early availability of theatrical releases for streaming; (9) An opinion on the difficulties Independent Cinema faces in the near future. I’ll close out this section with Joni Mitchell’s "Big Yellow Taxi" (from her 1970 Ladies of the Canyon album)—because “You don’t know what you’ve got ‘till it’s gone”—and a reminder that you can search many streaming/rental/purchase options at JustWatch.
Related Links Which You Might Find Interesting:
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Here’s more information about Radioactive:
(huge URL but that’s how it comes out on Amazon Prime)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2S5AoyKXkw (28:34 interview with director Marjane Satrapi, producer Paul Webster, scriptwriter Jack Thorne, and actors Aneurin Barnard, Rosamund Pike [sound level drops down suddenly at about 5:00 so you might find reason to use the CC button
on the YouTube screen’s lower right])
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/radioactive
https://www.metacritic.com/movie/radioactive
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If you’d rather contact Ken directly rather than leaving a comment here please use my email address of kenburke409@gmail.com—type it directly if the link doesn’t work. (But if you truly have too much time on your hands you might want to explore some even-longer-and-more-obtuse-than-my-film-reviews academic articles about various cinematic topics at my website,
https://kenburke.academia.edu, which could really give you something to talk to me about.)
If we did talk, though, you’d easily see how my early-70s-age informs my references, Musical Metaphors, etc. in these reviews because I’m clearly a guy of the later 20th century, not so much the contemporary world. I’ve come to accept my ongoing situation, though, realizing we all (if fate allows) keep getting older, we just have to embrace it, as Joni Mitchell did so well in "The Circle Game," offering sage advice even when she was quite young herself.
By the way, if you’re ever at The Hotel California knock on my door—but you know what the check-out policy is so be prepared to stay for awhile (quite an eternal while, in fact). Ken
P.S. Just to show that I haven’t fully flushed Texas out of my system here’s an alternative destination for you, Home in a Texas Bar, with Gary P. Nunn and Jerry Jeff Walker. But wherever the rest of my body may be my heart’s always with my longtime-companion, lover, and wife, Nina Kindblad, so here’s our favorite shared song—Neil Young’s "Harvest Moon"
—from the performance we saw at the Desert Trip concerts in Indio, CA on October 15, 2016 (as a full moon was rising over the stadium) because “I’m still in love with you,” my dearest, a never-changing-reality even as the moon waxes and wanes over the months/years to come.
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