Baron Dave Romm
Death At A Funeral
By Baron Dave Romm
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Death At A Funeral
No, not Death At A Funeral, the 2007 Frank Oz-directed entry about a dysfunctional British family. I'm talking about the Death At A Funeral, the 2010 (ie still in theaters as I type) film with an ensemble high-powered cast including Chris Rock, Tracy Morgan, Danny Glover, Ron Glass and Martin Lawrence.
Some of the funniest people on the planet just can't overcome a predictable script, lackluster direction and some of the more disgusting jokes in moviedom. To be fair, a couple of the people behind me in the sparsely-attended theater guffawed loudly in places where I cringed, so I'm perhaps not their target audience.
The plot involves the death of a patriarch of a large family. The funeral takes place at the home of his son, played by Chris Rock. Rock is one of the best manic comics around, and in Death At A Funeral he has to play the solid upper-middle-class pillar of the community who has to keep his family together. He does yeoman work... at the expense of laughs. Tracy Morgan plays a similar character to Tracy Jordan on 30 Rock. Morgan and Rock, playing brothers, feel comfortable bouncing off each other... at the expense of laughs.
One of the nieces (I think, it was hard for me to follow all the family members) brings a fiance (though she hasn't told them how serious they are) who has been dosed by a drug-dealing family member. The biggest laughs are watching his trip. A dwarf shows up, who no one knows, and who wants to talk to Chris Rock. This drives much of the plot.
The movie chugs along and reaches an acceptable conclusion. While Rock never has a chance to bust wide open, the story is about keeping control as the funeral spins wildly out of control, and Rock is well-cast as someone who looks on the verge of losing it but pulls himself together. Glass and Glover have small parts, with which they do well (given the material). Only Martin Lawrence didn't work at all, from my perspective.
The cast isn't wasted, and there are some good moments, but overall it doesn't gel. I suspect this will be remembered semi-fondly as a lesser movie by all involved but they won't be too ashamed. Death At A Funeral is short (99 minutes), which might not seem enough for everyone involved to do their star turn, but it slides by gently enough and doesn't feel cut or padded.
I can't really recommend Death At A Funeral for everyone, but if you like the actors it's a pleasant diversion. I doubt it will ever be on tv, at least not without some editing, but might make a decent DVD release if it has deleted scenes and maybe outtakes of the comedians ad libbing or going wild.
Reflections on the Census
As I was in 2000, I'm a Census Enumerator. The 2010 Census is not that different than the 2000 Census, at least from my observations. The basic mechanics are the same: First, the government mails out census forms. We as a nation count everyone and collect some statistics about the people who live here. April 1, 2010 was Census Day. Americans move around a lot, and so we take a snapshot of the country as of that date. If you don't send in your form (or we don't receive it in time), then Census Enumerators come to your door and ask some very simple questions.
In 2000, five out of six people got the short-form version, with seven subjects. This was a snap to fill out. The long-form version, with an additional 27 subjects, was more annoying to fill out, but not terribly difficult. All answers were confidential, as they are for 2010, with some very strict rules for everyone involved, including the Enumerators.
Minnesota is usually the state with the highest percentage of people who vote, or just narrowly second. For the Census, we're pretty good but not the best. 80% mail-back rate, just behind Wisconsin's 81%. "Minneapolis was singled out in a written statement as the major city with the greatest single improvement from 2000, the last time the census was done: up 8 points, from 68 to 76 percent." I probably had something to do with that, as one of the many Enumerators who not only counted people but explained to new Americans why the Census was important.
One of the prime uses of the Census is to allot seats in the House of Representatives. Minnesota is on the bubble, as are several other states. If the Census shows an accurate count while other states are a shade undercounted, we'll keep our 6th Congressional seat and one (or more) of the others will lose theirs. While the final tally is a long way away, Minnesota is doing very well.
The Census is mandated by the Constitution of the United States. We are a democracy, and our democratic duty is to be counted. Voting is a right; establishing proportional representation and other simple statistics is one of the defining aspects of being an American.
One of the other defining aspects of being an American is a distrust of the government. That's fine, as far as it goes. We hold elections to hold our leaders accountable. When you distrust the government for doing what is mandated by the Constitution, you are not a good American.
In 2000, I encountered a few people who did not want to cooperate with the Census. We did not discuss politics, though my supervisor said I could mention that they might be subject to fines or worse. This helped with a few patriots, but some scofflaws had to be bumped up the Census ladder for resolution.
The contrast could not be greater between the people who don't want to follow the Constitution and the new arrivals who want to be part of their new country. We had a few addresses that were not listed, for some reason. That means they weren't mailed a Census for and aren't in our Follow-Up packets. As we were in the neighborhood, people came up to us and complained that they hadn't gotten a census form. Sometimes, it seemed, English was not their first language, or their second, but they were motivated and we communicated well. They wanted to be part of America.
Anyone who doesn't like this country is welcome to leave. Anyone who wants to stand up and be counted is an American, no matter what their background or beliefs.
Oil Spill off New Orleans
*sigh*
Told ya' so.
As usual, the liberals were right and the conservatives were wrong. Especially about the environment, we should start listening to the people who have been correct most of the time. We go out of our way to ostracize thosewho have so consistently been wrong... or just outright lied.
Baron Dave Romm is a conceptual artist and a noble of Ladonia who produces Shockwave Radio Theater, writes in a Live Journal demi-blog maintains a Facebook Page, plays with a very weird CD collection and an ever growing list of political links. Dave Romm reviews things at random for obscure web sites. You can read all his music recommendations from Bartcop-E. Podcasts of Shockwave Radio Theater. Permanent archive. A nascent collection of videos are on Baron Dave's YouTube channel. More radio programs, interviews and science fiction humor plays can be accessed on the Shockwave Radio audio page.
Thanks to everyone who has sent me music to play on the air.
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Roger Ebert: Oh, say, can you wear?
I interrupt my regularly scheduled programming to try explain again what I believe about the issue of the American flag t-shirts in California schools.
Susan Estrich: The Silly Season (creators.com)
I'd like to believe it's the arrival of spring or maybe just the general decline in civility and common sense that seems to always be in the air in Washington. But it's hard to avoid the conclusion that the reaction to the nomination of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court has been a study in the sex discrimination that she has spent her career beating back.
Lucy Mangan: How I fell in love with the internet (guardian.co.uk)
The election may have been bad, but a little bit of good came out of itŠ
Jonathan Rauch: Do 'Family Values' Weaken Families? (nationaljournal.com)
IF YOU WANT TO FIND STABLE TWO-PARENT FAMILIES, BYPASS PALIN COUNTRY AND GO TO PELOSI TERRITORY.
ROSS DOUTHAT: Red Family, Blue Family (nytimes.com)
Fifty years ago, American family structures were remarkably uniform. The rich married at roughly the same rate as the poor and middle class. Divorce rates were low for the college educated and high school graduates alike. Out-of-wedlock births, while more common among African-Americans, were rare in almost every region and community.
Tim Rutten: "Book review: 'The Dead Republic' by Roddy Doyle" (latimes.com)
The ancient Irish believed a poet could kill with his satire.
Howard Reich: Lena Horne's defiance of racism made her an impassioned civil rights activist (Chicago Tribune)
Her luminous beauty - seen in doe-like eyes set against perfectly chiseled cheekbones - helped make her one of the first black women to triumph in Hollywood.
Kate Bush's only tour: pop concert or disappearing act? (guardian.co.uk)
On [May 13] in 1979, Kate Bush completed the last date of her first tour. Although she had redefined what was possible in a gig, she never played another full show. What happened, asks Graeme Thomson.
Claudia Roth Pierpont: BLACK, BROWN, AND BEIGE (newyorker.com)
Duke Ellington's music and race in America.
David Bruce: "Composition Project: Writing an Evaluation or Review" (Lulu.com)
Free download at http://stores.lulu.com/bruceb. This free pdf download describes a composition assignment-writing a review (e.g., of a restaurant, book, movie, etc.)-that I have used successfully during my years of teaching at Ohio University. Feel free to make as many copies as you want to for educational purposes.
Dover - Better Day (youtube.com)
Hubert's Poetry Corner
"Silent Island"
The Weekly Poll
New Question
The 'Sympathy for the Devil' Edition...
Glen Beck(-elzebub) - or perhaps some unearthly entity clothed in Glenn Beck's skin - on Faux and Fiends, discussing the Miranda Rights of alleged Times Square car bomber Faisal Shahzad said… "He is a citizen of the United States, so I say we uphold the laws and the Constitution on citizens… If you are a citizen, you obey the law and follow the Constitution. He has all the rights under the Constitution… We don't shred the Constitution when it is popular. We do the right thing"...
You weren't expecting that, were you? I don't think anybody was...
Quote Unquote: Glenn Beck on Faisal Shahzad's Rights | Indecision Forever | Comedy Central
and Huff Post
Sooooooo....
Who among you has the courage to stand with Beck(-elzebub) and for the record
state that you agree with him on this issue?
(haha! This too delicious!)
I am SO Bad... totheboneBob
Send your response to
Friendly Reminder:
Polling cut-off is tonight (Monday) at 8pm EDT
(5pm PDT fer you 'Left Coast' types, haha)
wrote:
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Link from RJ
Pencil Vs Camera
Hi there
A possible link about an exciting young artist
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Marine layer never burned off - cool and cloudy afternoon.
Fans Brave Storm
Gulf Aid
Music fans braved a torrential rainstorm in New Orleans for a benefit concert raising money for fishermen affected by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Lenny Kravitz, John Legend, Ani DiFranco, Allen Toussaint and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, with Mos Def, headlined the "Gulf Aid" concert Sunday.
The Gulf Relief Foundation is a nonprofit formed in the spill's aftermath. It says its beneficiaries would include the region's seafood industry and the restoration of coastal wetlands.
Gulf Aid
Israel Bars From West Bank
Noam Chomsky
Renowned Jewish-American scholar and political activist Noam Chomsky said he was barred from entering Israel and the West Bank on Sunday to speak at a Palestinian university.
Chomsky had been invited to speak on Monday at Bir Zeit University near Ramallah, but was stopped from entering the West Bank at the Israeli-controlled crossing from Jordan, he told Israel's Channel 10 television.
"I went with my daughter and two old friends. We went in the normal way to the border where we were all interrogated. They were particularly interested in me," he told Channel 10, speaking from Jordan.
However, he was denied entry because "the government did not like the kinds of things I say and they did not like that I was only talking at Bir Zeit and not at an Israeli university too," he said.
"I asked them if they could find any government in the world that likes the things I say," Chomsky said.
Noam Chomsky
Supports Polanski
Woody Allen
Woody Allen has restated his support for fellow filmmaker Roman Polanski, who is in house arrest in connection with a 33-year-old sex scandal.
Allen said Polanski "was embarrassed by the whole thing," "has suffered" and "has paid his dues." He said Polanski is "an artist and is a nice person" who "did something wrong and he paid for it."
It was not clear whether Allen was aware of new allegations when he made the remarks in an interview Saturday with France Info radio from the Cannes Film Festival. Allen had previously signed a petition calling for Polanski's release.
Woody Allen
Working From Warners Lot
Conan
Conan O'Brien will host his new TBS talk show from a California studio that most recently housed "America's Best Dance Crew." But it does have a rich movie history.
His show begins in November, and will be recorded on the Warner Brothers lot in Burbank. That's close to where O'Brien did the "Tonight" show at NBC, a job he held for a little more than six months.
Warners' Stage 15 was where "All The Presidents Men," "Batman Returns," "Ghostbusters," "The Perfect Storm," "The Music Man," "Gremlins," "Blazing Saddles" and many other films were made.
Conan
377-Year-Old Tradition
Oberammergau
In 1633, a German village vowed to put on a play about Jesus every 10 years if God rid them of the plague. This weekend, the inhabitants of Oberammergau made good on that promise once again.
And the 2010 version of the "Passion Play" keeps the tradition that only those born in the Bavarian village can take part. Otherwise you must be resident for at least 20 years or be married to a villager for 10.
More than 2,000 of the village's 5,200 inhabitants act, sing, play in the orchestra or work backstage, meaning that once a decade, and for about a year, normal life in Oberammergau is suspended.
The play has also evolved greatly over the centuries, particularly since Stueckl's first interpretation in 1990, aged just 28, when he introduced changes that have earned him hate mail from some.
"In 1990 we had a Protestant as a leading actor for the first time. The priest at the time thought the world was going to end. Today many of the actors don't even belong to the Church," he said. One of them is even a Muslim.
Oberammergau
Hands On iPhone Search
Steve Jobs
Brian Hogan's world closed in fast almost as soon as he sold the next-generation iPhone he found in a Silicon Valley bar to a popular technology website for a stack of $100 bills, according to court documents released Friday.
By April 19, Hogan's roommate had tipped off investigators that he was at the center of the drama, Apple's top lawyers were meeting with police to press for criminal charges and Steve Jobs himself was personally demanding the iPhone's return.
On Friday, San Mateo Superior Court Judge Clifford Cretan ordered unsealed a 10-page sworn statement with details written by San Mateo Sheriff's Detective Matthew Broad to obtain a warrant to search the car and home of Jason Chen, a Gizmodo.com editor. Broad's statement was used to obtain a search warrant for Chen's home and car.
According to the statement, the saga began March 25, when Apple engineer Robert "Gray" Powell left the iPhone prototype in the bar area of Redwood City's Gourmet Haus Staud restaurant.
Steve Jobs
Abu Dhabi Hides From Spotlight
'Sex and the City'
Troubled relationships are nothing new for "Sex and the City" story lines. But this one takes it to a different level: a possible snub from the Gulf city that plays the exotic backdrop for the movie sequel.
Less than two weeks before the release of "Sex and the City 2," it's unclear whether the film will be shown in oil-rich Abu Dhabi - the scripted setting where Carrie and her chic New York posse swap their Jimmy Choos for sandals and kick some sand at Middle Eastern traditions.
It's already been a rocky rapport. Emirates' officials turned down a request to film on location, forcing the crew to head to Morocco and recreate the Abu Dhabi setting. In 2008, the original "Sex and the City" film was not shown in the United Arab Emirates, where censors routinely remove scenes such as kissing, nudity and expletives from movies and television shows.
The film exposes some of the complexities for Gulf cities trying to compete on the international stage. Abu Dhabi has aggressively marketed itself as an emerging hub for film studios and production companies. But there's a high sensitivity about plots perceived as too racy or politically charged about regional affairs.
'Sex and the City'
Bush Vs Nixon
Brolin & Langella
Josh Brolin and Frank Langella have an amusing comparison to make about portraying Republican presidents.
"I played George W. Bush, and I'm still confused," Brolin joked to reporters Friday at the Cannes Film Festival, where "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" premiered.
Sitting next to Brolin at a news conference, Langella added, "I played Richard Nixon, and I'm not."
Brolin & Langella
Huge Collection Lost In Fire
Instituto Butantan
A fire in Brazil has destroyed what may be the world's largest scientific collection of dead snakes, spiders and scorpions.
Members of the Instituto Butantan said the collection lost in Saturday's fire included nearly 80,000 specimens that were the main source for research on thousands of species.
Many of the animals were used in the production of vaccines and other biopharmaceuticals, some derived from venom. Officials said the production of vaccines and other drugs will not be affected.
The dead specimens were preserved in flammable liquids, which contributed to the spread of the fire, firefighter Capt. Miguel Jodas told local media.
Instituto Butantan
Real tornado Hits Farm
'Twister'
A farm where portions of the movie "Twister" were shot has been damaged by a real tornado.
Scenes for the movie were shot at J. Berry Harrison Sr.'s farm in Fairfax about 190 kilometres northeast of Oklahoma City.
A real tornado hit the farm Monday when a half dozen twisters touched down during storms in Oklahoma.
In the 1996 movie starring Helen Hunt, a tornado runs along a road and over a bridge where actors are taking shelter. Harrison says the real tornado followed a similar path.
'Twister'
What Climate Change?
Lake Tanganyika
Africa's lake Tanganyika has heated up sharply over the past 90 years and is now warmer than at any time for at least 1,500 years, a scientific paper said on Sunday, adding that fish and wildlife are threatened.
The lake, which straddles the border between Tanzania in East Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is the world's second largest by volume and its second deepest, the paper says.
Geologists at Rhode Island's Brown University used carbon dating to measure the age of sediments on the lake floor. They then tested fossilized micro-organisms whose membranes differ at various temperatures to gauge how hot it was at times past.
Most climate change studies have focused on the atmosphere, but increasingly scientists are studying the effects on the oceans, seas and lakes, which all absorb a huge amount of heat.
Lake Tanganyika
Holy See In De-Nile
Vatican't
The Vatican on Monday will make its most detailed argument yet for why it is not liable for bishops who allowed priests to molest children in the U.S., in a motion that could affect other efforts to sue the Holy See in American courts, The Associated Press has learned.
In a motion to dismiss a lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds, the Holy See is expected to argue that a key Vatican document calling for secrecy in church trials for sex abuse cases was not, as victims' lawyers say, proof of a Vatican-orchestrated cover up. The Vatican's U.S. attorney, Jeffrey Lena, said Sunday there was no evidence the document was even known to the archdiocese in question - much less used.
In addition, the Holy See is expected to assert that bishops aren't Vatican employees because they aren't paid by Rome, don't act on Rome's behalf and aren't controlled day-to-day by the pope - factors courts use to determine whether employers are liable for the actions of their workers, Lena told the AP.
The Holy See is trying to fend off the first U.S. case to reach the stage of determining whether victims actually have a claim against the Vatican itself for negligence for the failure of bishops to alert police or the public about Roman Catholic priests who molested children.
Vatican't
New Canaries
Mules
The Environmental Protection Agency has a new weapon in the fight against radioactive contamination at a Los Angeles-area lab: Mules.
The EPA will use four mules to carry high-tech scanning equipment to detect radiation on steep and rocky terrain at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory.
The EPA is conducting a survey of soil and water contamination at the lab near Simi Valley, where rocket engines were tested for years and a partial meltdown of a nuclear reactor took place in 1959.
Results will be turned over to the state, which is overseeing a cleanup.
Mules
Street Signs Removed In Nevada
'Yeild to Bikes'
Residents no longer have to shake their heads over two "Yeild to bikes" signs along a busy Nevada street.
Officials in Sparks say the misspelled signs were replaced after they were featured on MSNBC's "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" show on Thursday night.
It's not the first time misspelled words have turned up on signs and roadways in the Reno area.
In the past, roads in school zones have been painted with the words "scool" and "shcool."
'Yeild to Bikes'
Weekend Box Office
'Iron Man 2'
Steel bested bows and arrows at the movies this weekend, with "Iron Man 2" fighting off the new release "Robin Hood" to stay at the top of the box office.
The superhero sequel starring Robert Downey Jr. took in $53 million domestically to remain at No. 1, according to studio estimates Sunday.
"Robin Hood," which features Russell Crowe teaming up with director Ridley Scott for the fifth time, debuted in the No. 2 spot with an estimated $37.1 million. The Universal Pictures blockbuster, a sort of prequel to the Robin Hood legend, co-stars Cate Blanchett as Marian.
But "Robin Hood" had a huge opening internationally, making $74 million outside North America for a total of $111.1 million this weekend. Nikki Rocco, Universal's president of domestic distribution, said the global figures reached beyond the studio's expectations.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Hollywood.com; final figures will be released Monday:
1. "Iron Man 2," $53 million.
2. "Robin Hood," $37.1 million.
3. "Letters to Juliet," $13.75 million.
4. "Just Wright," $8.5 million.
5. "How to Train Your Dragon," $5.1 million.
6. "A Nightmare on Elm Street," $4.7 million.
7. "Date Night," $4 million.
8. "The Back-Up Plan," $2.5 million.
9. "Furry Vengeance," $2.3 million.
10. "Clash of the Titans," $1.3 million.
'Iron Man 2'
In Memory
Ronnie James Dio
Ronnie James Dio, whose soaring vocals, poetic lyrics and mythic tales of a never-ending struggle between good and evil broke new ground in heavy metal, died Sunday, according to a statement from his wife and manager. He was 67.
Dio revealed last summer that he was suffering from stomach cancer shortly after wrapping up a tour in Atlantic City, N.J., with the latest incarnation of Black Sabbath, under the name Heaven And Hell.
Though Dio had recently undergone his seventh chemotherapy treatment, he was hopeful to perform again. Earlier this month, Heaven And Hell canceled its summer tour, but Dio did not view being sidelined as a permanent thing.
Dio rose to fame in 1975 as the first lead singer of Rainbow, the heavy metal band put together by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, who had just quit Deep Purple.
Dio then replaced legendary vocalist Ozzy Osbourne in Black Sabbath in 1980 with the critically acclaimed album "Heaven And Hell," considered by many critics to be one of the finest heavy metal albums of all time. His on-again, off-again tenure with Black Sabbath touched off an intense debate among fans as to which singer was the true essence of the band - a discussion that lasted until his death.
He also enjoyed a successful solo career with his self-titled band, Dio, in between his three stints with Black Sabbath (1980-82; 1992; and 2007-2009, when the band toured as Heaven And Hell, to differentiate it from Osbourne-led versions of Sabbath).
Dio organized an all-star charity collaboration in 1986 called "Hear N' Aid" to raise money for famine relief in Africa, styled on the successful "We Are The World" campaign of a few years earlier.
Ronnie James Dio
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