Camera Girl inspired my choice of this song. I came upstairs and found her going through boxes of very old photographs of our kids when they were “her babies.” Time is a remarkable force.
Category: Reviews
Reviews of books, movies, tv shows and other items
Ah, Wilderness! (1935) – An OCF Classic Movie Review
Eugene O’Neill, the playwright, was known for his psychologically dark and depressing tragedies that dwelt on alcoholism, drug addiction and family dysfunction. But he did write one comedy which was sort of an attempt at autobiography (sort of).
And that was “Ah, Wilderness!” Eventually this play was translated into a motion picture starring Lionel Barrymore, Wallace Beery and even a very young Mickey Rooney.
It’s the story of a family; the Millers, living in a small New England town in 1906. Barrymore is the family patriarch Nat and his wife Essie is played by the always amusing Spring Byington. Their youngest son Tommy is played by Micky Rooney. Beery plays Nat’s drunken and lazy brother Sid who works as a “reporter” on Nat’s town newspaper. The rest of the children are played by relative unknowns but in general, the acting and direction is quite good.
(Spoiler Alert – Skip down to last paragraph to avoid spoilers and read recommendation)
The event of the movie is the graduation from high school of the next to oldest son Richard. He’s the class valedictorian and an “intellectual” whose reading of modernist fiction, poetry and political thought gets him into trouble with his parents and his girlfriend’s father. Swinburne, G.B. Shaw, Oscar Wilde and Karl Marx provide Richard with plenty of quotes to rankle his elders. But when Muriel McComber’s father Dave finds a Swinburne poem among his daughter’s effects he orders her to break off her romance with Richard and pulls his advertisement from Nat’s newspaper.
To get back at the world Richard goes out with one of his older brother’s friends to a saloon and gets drunk and fraternizes with a chorus girl who sits on his lap and soaks him for drinks and some money. After he gets thrown out by the bartender for being underaged he show up home drunk and depressed much to his family’s chagrin. The end of the movie revolves around Nat explaining the facts of life with respect to women and living a decent life to his son. Of course, Richard and Muriel re-unite and even her father comes around to approving of their romance.
In between Richard’s problems we’re witness to the drunken escapades of Nat’s brother Sid (played by Wallace Beery) and his on-again, off-again courtship of Lily Davis who must be Mrs. Miller’s cousin. Beery performs a very over-the-top rendition of his drunken oaf character and Lily seems to take solace from chastising Sid for his drinking and career failures.
Alright, so why do I like this movie? Many of the exterior shots of the small town were filmed in Grafton, MA. And remarkably the town still looks surprisingly the same after almost a hundred years. I know the area very well from an earlier phase of my life in New England and find these views of the town incredibly nostalgic. So that’s one thing the movie has going for it (admittedly a highly specific point with a very small audience of appreciation). The other virtue the movie possesses is the charm of a small town from the very dawn of the twentieth century. There’s a simplicity to the activities that still has an attraction to some of us looking back from the awful alienated place we find ourselves in today. There’s a five-minute scene of the children shooting off fire works on Fourth of July morning that brings me back over sixty years to my childhood. And the awfulness of the high school graduation talent-show-scene makes me laugh for its similarity to some of the shows I have attended. There’s just a thick slice of good-natured old Americana that cheers my heart. So, who is this movie for? Probably just me, unless what you read here piques your curiosity.
ShatnerKhan X
Today I spoke to my fellow initiates in Advanced Shatneriana and it was decided that ShatnerKhan X will take place on January 17th at the Compound in the heart of Dunwich. Now you may ask is this really the tenth ShatnerKhan. Well, I tried to look back at the records and discovered that in November of 2024 I mentioned ShatnerKhan VIII. But before that the highest number I could find was III. So, something seems wrong. I went farther back and found that ShatnerKhan I occurred on November 1st 2019.
That was over a year after my initial decision to celebrate all things Shatner in my groundbreaking post. “William Shatner a Demigod of Bad Acting.” It’s required reading at Starfleet Academy.
The actual agenda is not as structured as in ShatnerKhans past. Will we watch the two Twilight Zone episodes? Will we review the various Star Trek episodes where Kirk performs his signature shoulder roll? Will we rate the various alien women he groped? Will we analyze his interactions with Lieutenant Sulu for any telltale animosity? Will we do a survey to decide in which episode Kirk looks fattest? The only thing I’m certain is we will play “Rocket Man.” After all it’s a short performance and it combines all of Shatner’s signature tics in one package. It has the weird pauses, the meaningless syllable stress changes in dialog and his truly embarrassing facial expressions trying to convey inappropriate emotions. It is a masterclass in bad acting with bad singing thrown into the bargain for free.
And it is important to have a ShatnerKhan. As we all know Bill Shatner was born in 1931. He will be ninety-five in 2026 if he makes it to March 22nd. And honestly, he’s starting to look a little raggedy. So now is definitely a good time to review his many achievements and mock him relentlessly.
In addition, it’s also an excuse to eat extremely fattening foods and sit around and shoot the breeze with my old friends. We’re not getting any younger either and it’s time to catch up on what’s gone on over the last year or two. There are milestones and family stuff and plans to make for the upcoming year and now is the best time before we all get swamped with work and other commitments.
So it is with a light heart that I announce this incredible event. Will we wear the Shatner masks from the “Halloween” movies (probably not, they’re really uncomfortable and would stop us from continuously eating)? Will we watch any of the Star Trek movies like parts of the Wrath of Khan with the famous “Khaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!!!!! Moment (probably not, too much work to tee up)? Will we eat and drink way too much food and dessert? There I can answer categorically and emphatically Yes!!! Of course, there is the danger of bad weather upending our plans and causing a cancellation. This is after all Dunwich, a cursed land with endless evil bleeding into everything including the weather. But we are intrepid individuals and fear no evil. So SHATNERKHAN X !!!!!!!
Tenacity of Purpose
I had my oldest grandson over today. I spent about three hours in the morning clearing snow from the driveways and the afternoon and evening watching a science fiction tv series that he liked. It’s called “Murderbot” and it’s about a cyborg that figures out how to override the “governor” that forces him to obey and protect humans. The series is based on books that my grandson read and liked. It was somewhat a black comedy because the cyborg finds humans incredibly annoying and so he is sorely tempted to do them harm from time to time. He is also disgusted by most human speech and emotional activities, finding affection and sexual behavior especially nauseating.
And so the plot puts him in contact with a group of humans that can only be described as woke hippies. They’re constantly virtue signaling about their sexuality and politics and thereby annoying the “SecUnit” (security unit) almost constantly which triggers him to complain internally and that provides most of the monologue of the show.
And the SecUnit is further incensed when his actions to keep the hippies safe requires him to kill cyborgs and humans who are actively hunting. The audience sees the absurdity of this squeamishness but the hippies are just too pacifistic to understand. But by the end of the season, they learn the value of fighting back and SecUnit becomes a valued part of their group. Well, I can’t say I didn’t despise the hippies but the cyborg was an amusing protagonist.
Afterwards we talked about fiction publishing and how short stories are currently shared on the internet (for free). He mentioned a story he was reading that had a character that finds a sentient being that resembles a tin can but is possessed of tremendous cosmic powers. I told him it reminded me of a short story called “The Sack” about an omniscient being found by humans on an asteroid that could answer almost any question and how that becomes the cause of an interplanetary battle.
Then we talked for a while about joining the work force because he graduates college in May. I told him a story about some mistakes I made during a job interview and how maybe they worked to my advantage in the long run. And we talked about crafting a resume. I had a story about how maybe insanity may have played a hand in one of the first jobs I got. A distant relative added some text to my resume using the phrase “tenacity of purpose.” And this phrase was mentioned by my prospective boss’s boss as one of the things that attracted them to my application. At a later date I could confirm that both the relative that came up with that phrase and the manager who liked it were both certifiably insane. Maybe that was a good thing. But it has to make you think about how bizarre circumstance plays a role in moving our lives in the directions they go. I told my grandson to use that phrase “tenacity of purpose” with care since apparently it attracts the crazies.
An interesting day.
The Future is Entertainment that Entertains, Maybe
For the last ten years Hollywood has been making movies based on what they thought audiences ought to see instead of what they wanted to see. This steady stream of girl-boss super hero and transgender romance stories have lost the studios literally billions of dollars. I’ve been raving against this for years saying something will have to give and finally it has.
There’s a guy named Scott Cawthon whose twisted imagination came up with a story line where a Chuck E. Cheese-style restaurant becomes possessed by evil spirits and the animatronic animals start slaughtering the patrons. He called it “Five Nights at Freddy’s.” He went from on-line storytelling to a video game to finally a couple of movies in the theaters that made hundreds of millions of dollars. And the Rotten Tomatoes scores from the professional reviewers was 33% and the rating by customers was 86%.
So, what’s the lesson? Find what the audience wants and give it to them. And this is becoming more frequent. A YouTuber named Markiplier self-financed a sci-fi horror movie called Iron Lung about a prisoner sealed in a submarine prison on a moon covered in an ocean of blood. And once again there is a built-in audience from the game and story fans on-line.
Well, finally the actual studios are waking up and saying, “Wait a minute. Why don’t we start making movies out of stories that people actually like?” So, there are about a billion kids who play Minecraft so a Minecraft movie will make a billion dollars. Duh! Studios like Apple are starting to make science fiction and fantasy movies that piggy back on books that have actual audience appeal instead of left-wing ideological cachet. It’s still barely detectable but without a doubt it’s the future.
Now, this isn’t targeted at me. It’s for my grandkids. They play the video-games that these movies are based on. When I watch them it’s like some kind of fever dream. The plots are crazy, the characters are cartoonish and the pacing is almost non-existent. But no one is preaching. It’s reminiscent of the slasher movies back in the eighties. The audience was teenagers and there was no danger of anyone winning an Academy Award but the audience left happy and the studios made money. This is the model that seems to be returning.
I was talking to one of my grandsons about this phenomenon and he provided a piece of supporting evidence. He mentioned that none of his friends were going to bother to see the third Avatar movie because basically it’s the same movie recycled. He said now that the CGI isn’t as cutting edge there’s really no reason to go listen to the same lecture about the military-industrial complex colonizing and oppressing space-aborigines for a third time. Of course, that’s my take on what he said but it was interesting to me that he recognized the recycled aspect of the plot. The Zoomers aren’t as helpless as some people paint them. At least not the ones I’m related to.
Merry Christmas Eve 2025
I hope everyone has the merriest Christmas Eve they can. I’ll be out of the house on Christmas Eve and things may be a little quiet on the site but after Christmas I’ll try to provide content. Meanwhile here’s some pagan solstice music.
My Christmas Tribute to the ZMan
I think the ZMan always linked to Fairytale of New York by the Pogues every Christmas. And being a native New Yorker I have a certain nostalgia for the city from the time before it died.
And since this is the first Christmas since the ZMan died I thought I’d post something to remind me of his site.
Merry Christmas to ZMan wherever heaven for the dissident right might be.
You Were Always a Good Friend to Me
As all who have followed my website know I’m a connoisseur of the various film versions of Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol.” And I’ve opined before that the premiere version of the Ghost of Jacob Marley is Frank Finlay’s portrayal in the 1984 version with George C Scott as Scrooge.
Here is the whole scene:
Now, why do I say it’s best? Technical presentation? Acting ability? Faithfulness to the book? Emotional impact? Actually, all of the above. In all aspects of the scene this version is head and shoulders above all the rest.
The makeup on the ghost is wonderful as are his costume and the pattern and details of his fetters. Even his eyes appear to be those of a dead man. Finlay’s reading of the lines is masterful and the emotions he provides are wonderfully potent. And the lines selected are the best selection from any of the versions out there. And the climax of his performance is his outrage when Scrooge tells him, “But you were always a good man of business, Jacob.”
Marley howls, “Business!” Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”
This one speech is easily seen as the reason for the whole story. We see the partners face to face and we see what Scrooge cannot. Marley was what Scrooge is; a terrible human being who cared not at all for his fellow creatures, their pain and suffering. But death and judgement have taught him the error of his ways and in his shame and penitence he wants to save his old partner from himself.
And because he was as Scrooge is, he selects the instruments that have the best chance of reaching into Scrooge’s heart and mind and shaking him out of his evil habits and awaken in him the knowledge that the most precious treasure on this Earth is the chance to use our time to comfort those around us and recognize the kinship we all should have.
So those are the main points. But even small bits contribute to this “Marley.” When the ghost appears Scrooge demands to know what it wants of him. Untying the funeral kerchief from around his head, his bottom jaw drops wide open with a loud clicking noise to indicate that he is a corpse. Only once his mouth is unbound can he answer. “Much!”
So, yes. This is the best Marley. And George C Scott provides a fitting foil for Marley’s mission. He is suitably impenitent and uninterested in Marley’s gift of potential reclamation. When told of the three separate spiritual visits he asks Marley if they could all come at once and save time. All in all, he is completely undeserving of Marley’s gift. But as we shall see the scope of the gift that Marley procured manages to finally break through Scrooge’s shell of callousness.
Well done Jacob Marley.
Not So Forbidden Planet
Dr. Morbius – Young man, my daughter is going to be terribly punished for what she just said.
J J Adams – Dr Morbius, don’t you understand it’s your subconscious that is responsible for all this death and destruction?
Dr. Morbius – What, me harm my own daughter.
J J Adams – Well, look at those gages. Your subconscious monster will use whatever amount of unlimited power it takes to break through that door.
Dr. Morbius – I’m helpless to stop this terrible power.
Altaira – John please do something.
J J Adams – Alright I will. (draws his sidearm and fatally wounds Dr Morbius who falls to the ground)
(The gages of the Krell machine quickly settle down to minimal levels and the door that was white hot cools visibly.)
Dr. Morbius – Son, throw that switch.
J J Adams – What will it do?
Dr. Morbius – It will initiate a chain reaction inside the Krell thermonuclear power plants that will unstoppably consume the planet in a miniature nova. The Krell technology is too dangerous for humanity. It must be destroyed.
J J Adams – Sorry Dr Morbius, I disagree. The technology they possessed was too dangerous for them and for you. But we’ll harvest the Krell knowledge without unleashing any subconscious monsters and I predict we’ll do just fine.
(Morbius expires)
Altaira – John, what do we do now?
J J Adams – Our first problem is how to get out of here. That door will be cool soon but it’s probably permanently welded shut. I’ll contact my crew and we’ll provide a funeral ceremony for your father and Doc. Afterwards we’ll get back in touch with Earth and begin the start of the project to decipher the Krell technology. That will be the largest step change in human knowledge since the discovery of the faster than light drive. It will take tens of thousands of scientists and engineers centuries to mine all of the knowledge here.
Altaira – But what will become of me?
J J Adams – That depends on what you want to do. If you want to stay on Altair IV, you will have many opportunities to press your legal right to some kind of remuneration for the government’s seizure of the Krell technology. I’d say you may end up as one of the wealthiest humans in the galaxy.
Altaira – But what about us?
J J Adams – Well Alta, a starship captain doesn’t make enough of a salary to impress an heiress but if you can wait a year for a wedding I can most probably wangle a desk job on Altair IV and we can see whether your interest in biology is strictly academic or not.
Altaira – I’ll wait for you John. I don’t want to leave my home. But with my father gone I need someone to help me figure out my future.
J J Adams – Well, as I said I’ll be stuck here indefinitely while the military secures the Krell infrastructure. So, you’ll get a chance to get to know me when I’m not killing your relatives or fighting invisible monsters.
(They embrace, kiss and then begin the search for a way out.)
Musings in the Mother Ship
In the alien spaceship approaching the mothership:
David: Head straight for it.
Steve: What the hell?
David: Don’t touch them. Don’t, don’t, don’t! I was counting on this. They are bringing us in.
Steve: When the hell was you gonna tell me?
David: Oops.
Steve: We’ve got to work on our communication.
Seeing the troops inside the mother ship
David: Oh, my God! Look at that! There must be thousands of them.
Steve: Millions of them. What the hell are they doing?
David: Looks like they’re preparing an invasion.
The ship docks with the alien command center and David attempts to upload his virus into the alien control system.
David: (CLAPS) We’re in. (SIGHS) Do it. Do it. Do it.
Back on Earth:
General: Sir, he’s uploading the virus. Eagle One, the package is being delivered. Stand by!
In the Alien spaceship:
David: Oh yeah, oh yeah! One more step.
Suddenly the screen flashes a message in the alien text. David pushes several keys and the message resolves into English, “INPUT PASSWORD.” David lets out a strangled scream and says:
David: Steve we’re cooked. I have no idea what to enter.
Steve: Just write password in lower case.
David: That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. We know nothing of their language or software rules.
Steve: Yeah, well then how the hell were you able to write a virus that would work in their system?
David: Well, that’s a good point. Let’s see, p a s s w o r d. Good heavens it worked!
Steve: Of course it worked. There’s only twenty minutes left in the movie. We have a few threats left like the ship docking lock that won’t release and then the pursuit by the three alien interceptor craft and finally the debris field created by the nuclear explosion in the mother ship and then we’ll be home free to the heroes’ welcome where the pretty girls jump into our arms and kiss us.
David: Well, that doesn’t sound so bad. Tell me does Randy Quaid manage to earn the respect of his stepson by saving the day during the fight against the alien ship back on Earth.
Steve: Yes, but he dies sacrificing his life to destroy the ship by crashing into the alien ship’s primary weapon.
David: Well, that’s probably for the better. He was a very silly and annoying character. After all, if he really had been abducted by the aliens why would he still be alive?
Steve: Good point. Do you think we’ll get to be in the sequel in twenty years?
David: Well, I will be. By then I’ll be looking for an easy paycheck to retire on but you’ll be a much bigger star and won’t want your name associated with the kind of cheesy project that a sequel to this goofy movie will likely be.
Steve: Yeah, I think you’re right. I’ll probably concentrate on high end projects directed by Steven Spielberg. Of course, I’ll leave space for the occasional sequel to “Bad Boys.” You shouldn’t forget what got you to the dance.
David: Yeah, I’m hoping to make at least one more sequel to “The Fly” one of these days.
Steve: Oy!