The Legend- Betty White

TV icon Betty White passed just weeks short of her 100th birthday. 

She has been with us all our lives and was the source of humor and decency. Her advocacy for animals was well known. She had the longest running career in TV history and was the first woman to produce a TV show. 21 Emmy nominations resulted in seven Emmy Awards. 

She had hit shows in various decades like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Golden Girls, and Hot in Cleveland. She appeared in numerous films and tv including talk shows and guested in countless game shows, but she excelled as a top player on Password with its host and her husband Allen Ludden. 

She experienced a career resurgence when a Super Bowl ad in 2010 sparked a Facebook campaign to have her guest host SNL. It came to pass in a glorious Mother's Day edition that also served as a mega-reunion for many past players. 

She always kept a sunny outlook on life, and losing her is like losing a part of ourselves. Here's to an amazing career and wonderful lady.

(Here is a short clip from Golden Girls that is amazingly prophetic.)

Madden Was Football

Hall of Fame football coach and broadcast legend John Madden passed at 85. This gregarious personality coached for ten glorious years the Oakland Raiders into perennial playoff contenders winning The Super Bowl and posting the highest winning percentage of all coaches to this day. He retired from coaching early and began a remarkable run as a broadcast analyst for four major networks winning an unheard of 16 Emmy Awards. His down to earth approach to football enlightened a bigger audience with his acumen and knowledge punctuated with an occasional vocal sound effect for emphasis. Madden Football video game became an all time best seller.  Madden was football.

Howes and the Music Box

Actress Sally Ann Howes passed at 91. She starred on stage, TV and films. But for me she will be forever remembered for her role in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang especially a music box scene with Dick Van Dyke. It is lovely.

SPIDERMAN: NO WAY HOME and Its Epic Conclusion

 

Spiderman: No Way Home not only concludes a trilogy, but is the culmination of every Spiderman film.  It is the most ambitious Marvel film since Avengers: Endgame.

Continuing Spiderman: Far From Home, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is revealed as Spiderman which causes him pain and chaos for friends Ned and MJ (Zendaya) and his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei). Desperate to have his anonymity back, he sees Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) for a spell to fix things, but it goes horribly wrong unleashing a multiverse of past iterations especially major villains (Willem Dafoe, Jamie Foxx, Alfred Molina et al).  To complicate matters, Peter realizes that these villains are doomed in their world and wonders if they can be ‘saved’ even as the multiverse becomes more complex and dangerous. And so begins a battle royal between good and evil. 

This dark, heartfelt storyline with its themes of redemption, personal loss, love, and sacrifice, has poignant moments throughout especially at the end which serves as an endpoint for the franchise.  Featuring countless Easter Eggs, ‘amazing’, surprise appearances, and call backs to the past, tears will be shed amid cheers and laughter as familiar, beloved faces appear. Major characters get substantial screen time and even achieve a degree of closure.   Despite early, slow moments, director Jon Watts deftly orchestrates a multitude of characters and subplots without losing focus.  There are a number of memorable moments and emotional payoffs for those who have watched these films from the beginning.

This is Holland’s best performance to date as his Peter Parker matures right before our eyes while forced to confront crises with real stakes.  For Spiderman enthusiasts, this is Nirvana; this is as good as it gets.  it’s a supremely entertaining, mind boggling film made for its fandom. (There are two end credit scenes.)

**** of **** stars

Lifestyles of the Rich and Decadent in HOUSE OF GUCCI

 

Based on true events, House of Gucci depicts the Gucci family over two decades, and how wealth and jealousy forever altered the course of their iconic name.

In 1978, Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga) meets Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver), a young law student and heir to the Gucci fashion dynasty. Their relationship drives a wedge between him and his father (Jeremy Irons). Patrizia is desperate to live the Gucci lifestyle, and upon her pregnancy, Maurizio’s proud uncle (Al Pacino chews the scenery) and later his inept cousin (Jared Leto unrecognizable in makeup) help the couple vie for control of the company.  Emotions run high, and family ties will be destroyed. When Patrizia’s marriage is jeopardized, she takes things to a deadly extreme.  

The cast, loaded with Oscar caliber talent, give it their all, at times verging on parody. Driver is convincing, but Gaga owns this film with her fierce portrayal of a sassy, driven woman.   (You can almost envision a young Sophia Loren excelling in this role.)

Director Ridley Scott (Gladiator) convincingly presents a world of wealthy decadence and fashion icons amid disco tunes, flashy period costumes, and impressively shot locations.  You do get drawn into this world of the glitz and glamor even though there is little else to identify with especially when you see examples of hyper-extravagant spending. (This story could easily have been a Ryan Murphy-type television miniseries.) 

There are moments where events and motives are not entirely clear; what is clear is this dysfunctional family squandered their iconic brand name and ended in financial ruin, infidelity, and even murder.  No one emerges unscathed and the final postscript is bitterly ironic.  It sort of makes you glad you visited but did not stay.

*** of **** stars (mostly for Gaga)

Behind the Scenes of BEING THE RICARDOS

 

Being the Ricardos is writer/director Aaron Sorkin’s engrossing dramatization of the relationship of Lucille Ball and husband Desi Arnaz, TV icons of the classic show, I Love Lucy. It’s a must for Lucy fans. 

Shuffling between the 1940s and 1950s, we see how Lucy (Nicole Kidman) and Desi (Javier Bardem who gets to sing) meet in Hollywood and achieve stardom. During their hit TV show as they prepare for a table reading, three key events intersect: Lucy is branded a Communist in the newspapers, Desi wants to include her newly announced pregnancy in the show, and rumors of Desi’s womanizing begin to make the news. As the temperamental stars, harried writers, and nervous sponsors navigate the treacherous landscape littered with bruised egos, constant rewrites, and the unexpected, the show approaches its live taping in front of a studio audience with the stars’ careers and marriage at a crossroads.

The excellent screenplay is smart and amusing with occasional, rapid fire dialogue as it offers a fascinating glimpse at the creative process (much will resonate with Lucy fans as moments from the show are recreated) while revealing dark, sobering truths about their marriage. Lucy is portrayed as a savvy comedienne constantly perfecting her material for audiences while Desi was the innovating, behind-the-scenes producer.  

The cast including J. K. Simmons and Nina Arianda as Bill Frawley and Vivian Vance, is quite effective, but Kidman’s transformation into Lucy is remarkable with stunning makeup and her vocal and physical mimicry; it’s a great performance.

Perhaps the events did not happen quite as they are presented, but Sorkin makes a compelling case that it could have. This loving homage to their legacy is a candid, bittersweet valentine for I Love Lucy devotees.  

***1/2 of **** stars (add ½* for Kidman)

Spielberg’s Triumphant WEST SIDE STORY

 

Director Steven Spielberg realizes his unique version of the 1957 stage musical, West Side Story.  It’s a labor of love that not only honors the 1961 Oscar winning film version, but should garner new generations of fans.

This updating of Romeo and Juliet amid an urban setting is still timely with its racial conflict between whites led by The Jets and Puerto Ricans led by The Sharks and the love story between Tony and Maria from these rival factions that drives the story.

Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner efficiently restage scenes with sensitivity and additional context; (some dialogue is Spanish without subtitles which adds realism). The dance sequences are vigorous and spectacular, while inspired by but never upstaging the groundbreaking choreography of the original’s Jerome Robbins.  Supported by the infectious Leonard Bernstein score and (recently deceased) Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics, the songs emerge organically and seamlessly from the narrative.  Famous set pieces are intact including an exhilarating rendition of “America”, the rousing gymnasium dance off, the montage leading to the rumble, and an amusing take on “Officer Krupke”. 

Brilliantly cast (featuring Ansel Elgort as Tony) with actors who can really sing and dance (the 1961 film having numerous, dubbed singing voices), special mention should go to newcomer Rachel Zegler as Maria (whose rendition of “Tonight” might elicit tears of joy), and there is a strong field of supporting actors (Mike Faist and David Alvarez) and actresses (legendary Rita Moreno and Ariana DeBose with a knockout, Oscar worthy performance).  

Production values are exemplary: the fluid camerawork is dazzling, set designs are period authentic, and the colorful costumes are sumptuous. This doesn’t supplant the earlier film but offers reimagined, alternative scenes.  It’s a glorious celebration of a cherished play that shows the filmmakers at their very best.

**** of **** stars