Happy Birthday, William Shakespeare!

Posted on April 23, 2011 at 12:29 pm

Don’t start with me about who wrote Shakespeare. Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare and today is his birthday. Celebrate with some of the many, many movie versions of, about, or inspired by his plays. Here are some of my favorites:

1. The Taming of the Shrew Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton bring their legendary combustible chemistry to this rambunctious version of Shakespeare’s most famous battle of the sexes. For an extra treat, pair it with the Cole Porter musical it inspired, Kiss Me Kate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9Cm6CU5Kc4

2. Romeo + Juliet Baz Lurhmann’s dazzling version of one of the world’s great tragic love stories is a treat for the eyes, ears, and soul. For an extra treat, pair it with the more traditional version directed by Franco Zeffirelli.

3. Shakespeare In Love This best-picture and best-actress Oscar winner is a highly fictionalized account of the writing of “Romeo and Juliet,” with the magnificent Judi Dench as Queen Elizabeth and a brilliantly witty script by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard. For an extra treat, try to catch a performance of A Cry of Players, a play about the young Shakespeare by the author of “The Miracle Worker.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUIemfeB_uI

4. Henry V There is the thrill of the St. Crispian’s Day speech. There is the heart-wrenching parting with the old friends who cannot be a part of the young king’s new life. But for me, the greatness of this play is that in the midst of all of the drama, Shakespeare inserts a scene of a young French princess trying to learn English so she can understand the man who is walloping her countrymen — and makes it work. For an extra treat, compare it to the Laurence Olivier version, very much the product of its WWII era.

5. The Tempest My own favorite of Shakespeare’s plays is thrilling with Helen Mirren as Prospera, a wizard who calls on all her powers of enchantment to provide a happy ending for her daughter and justice for herself. For an extra treat, try the space-age adaptation, Forbidden Planet.

List: Passover Movies

Posted on April 19, 2011 at 9:59 pm

Reposting — Hag Sameach! Passover is not just about remembering the story of the Exodus from Egypt. It is about telling the story. Thousands of years before people talked about “learning styles,” the Seder included many different ways of telling the story, so that everyone would be included, and everyone would feel the power of the journey toward freedom. The Haggadah makes the story come alive through taste, smell, and touch as well as sight and hearing, and through the example of the four sons it presents the story to the wise, the simple, the skeptic, and most especially to the young — one of the highlights of each Seder is when the youngest person present asks the traditional four questions, beginning with “Why is this night different from all other nights?”If they had known about movies back in the time of Moses, they would have included that form of story-telling, too. For younger children, The Prince of Egypt and Joseph – King of Dreams are a very good introduction to the story of how the Jews came to live in Egypt and how Moses led them out of slavery. Older children and adults will appreciate Charlton Heston’s The Ten Commandments and the more recent versions of the story, starring Burt Lancaster, and Ben Kingsley.

List: Movies with a Touch of Brazil

Posted on April 14, 2011 at 3:56 pm

In honor of this week’s release of “Rio,” an animated film set in Brazil, put on some samba music and think about some of these Brazilian-flavored films for your Netflix queue. (No, I am not including the superb film actually called “Brazil” because it doesn’t actually have anything to do with the country.)

1. Flying Down to Rio Filmed on an obvious back-lot very far from its Brazilian setting, this film is best remembered for the first on-screen teaming of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers and a dance number featuring girls on the wings of airplanes.

2. Next Stop Wonderland This smart indie romantic comedy is set in the Boston area and no one goes to Brazil. But it is the story of a nurse played by Hope Davis who loves Brazilian music and it has a deliciously romantic samba soundtrack.

3. Saludos Amigos/Three Caballeros Before the United States entered World War II, the US government sent Walt Disney and some of his staff to South America on a goodwill tour and when they came back they made these two animated classics, featuring Brazilian parrot Jose Carioca.

4. Walt & El Grupo This documentary about the Disney trip to South America in 1941 is fascinating for at least three reasons. It is a reminder of the pre-Google days when it was possible for tourists to be truly astounded by a visit to another continent because they had no previous exposure to images of the scenery and cities they would be visiting. It is a frank and touching look at a cultural exchange. And it is an enthralling look at the way that artists can be galvanized by what they see — in one unforgettable shot we see Disney artist Mary Blair transform the entire design of Disney based on the inspiration she saw around her in South America.

5. Notorious One of Alfred Hitchcock’s most romantic thrillers is this story of undercover agent Ingrid Bergman who goes to Brazil to spy on a Nazi supporter and must marry him to find out what he is hiding.

Also: “Nancy Goes to Rio,” “City of God,” “Fitzcarraldo,” and “Black Orpheus”

And be on the lookout for the upcoming “The Brazilian Job,” the sequel to “The Italian Job.”

Interview: Candace Cameron Bure of ‘Truth Be Told’

Posted on April 13, 2011 at 8:00 am

“Family Movie Night,” sponsored by Proctor & Gamble and Walmart, has produced another fine film for all ages. Candace Cameron Bure (“Full House,” “Make It or Break It”) stars in “Truth Be Told,” the story of a marriage counselor who is not married. When she has a job opportunity that requires a husband, she tells a lie, and enlists an old friend and his children to pretend to be her family.

I spoke to Candace about the role and about her work and her ministry, speaking about her faith and giving back to the community.

Tell me about “Truth Be Told.”

I couldn’t have been more excited when I was sent this script. I had seen some of the Family Movie Night shows and said to myself, “I want to do one of those!” When I read the script, it was absolutely perfect. I fell in love with Annie Morgan, the character I play. She’s a family and marriage counselor. It was something I can totally relate to, and family and marriage are so important to me. I do a lot of speaking at conferences and churches about family and marriage, so it was a topic I am passionate about. The premise is that one little lie snowballs into this huge mess and honesty is always the best policy.

That’s what I love about this series. These are not kids’ films that adults can tolerate or movies directed at adults without offensive content but true family movies with characters and situations that everyone in the family can understand and will want to talk about later.

I appreciate it as a mom. I have 12, 11, and 9 year-olds. I loved the fact that Proctor & Gamble and Walmart teamed up to give us this time on a Friday night when we can sit down with our families and watch a movie that we don’t have to worry about. It gives us things to think about and to open up some conversations with the family. “What happens if you tell a lie?” Depending on the age of your kids it can be a very simple conversation but you can turn it to a situation you and your family have recently experienced. I can open the door for something else your child has been struggling with. You use it as a platform for whatever dialogue needs to be exposed in your family at this time.

What happens in the film?

My character is offered a job at a radio station and because she is a marriage counselor, they assume she is married. And family is very important to the man who owns the company. She is probably not going to get the job unless she has a husband. She runs into an old college friend who is a widower and convinces him and his children to pretend to be her family for the weekend. The relationship develops — it is definitely a romantic comedy.

What is your experience like as you speak to groups about your faith?

I’ve been speaking and sharing my Christian faith for seven or eight years, and now I am speaking to the bigger groups like Extraordinary Women and Women of Joy. I actually just got back from a conference with Extraordinary Women. Sometimes there’s anywhere from 1500-15,000 ladies I will speak to. It is an amazing opportunity for me to share my faith and what is important to me and ultimately the gospel of Jesus Christ. I think I am as encouraged or maybe even more to see that God allows me to be used in that sense. These ladies will tell me they are encouraged by hearing my story and yet I am in awe that I am just a person getting this opportunity so I feel very privileged. It’s a very different thing from being on television. Most people would think that you would automatically be comfortable if you’re an actress to go up on stage to speak but it is actually very different. It’s not the number of people that scares me. The more there are, the easier it is for me. But it is a very different thing to open your heart and share your heart and be exposed in that way, not reading a memorized script or acting a different character. I get much more nervous speaking live at an event. You throw a camera on me and I am comfortable!

You have written about your faith as a way to manage food issues.

I had an emotional attachment to food. I ran to food for comfort, to fill a void instead of realizing I had to run to God for those things. I learned to honor my body by eating healthily and exercising but really by putting my faith into the forefront of my relationship with food by honoring my body as a temple God gave me and learning to run to Him for those needs and not to turn to food for it. I don’t enjoy getting up at 5 am some mornings but I see it as a necessity to take care of my body. To eat healthy, that’s all about the choices I make whether in a restaurant or the grocery story. The food’s not making it for me. There are so many tools out there to get us on the right track and help us make better choices. We don’t value those choices as much as we should. One choice a day, one choice an hour. If you look at it this way, it’s not so overwhelming.

Do you have a favorite Bible passage?

I don’t like that question because there are so many good ones! But the one that’s been on my computer desktop recently is Philippians 1, Verse 6. I just go, “God’s good work is in all of us and He will carry that on.” I don’t need to worry about it, I don’t need to stress over it. I know God has a plan set before me and I need to obediently just follow the footsteps that he’s laid out and keep my eyes focused on Him and He will carry out that good work to completion. And whatever that is, it might not be my own expectation but He knows what that is.

It’s everything. We read the Bible together and we talk about verses that can help us focus for that day. If we have a need or a worry for that day we find verses where it talks about it. We go to church. My kids are involved in Awana and youth group. My daughter has started leading worship and singing at her chapel. They go to a Christian school. So it is in every aspect of our lives but most important, my husband and I try to be that example, to show them that it is not just words but by our own actions and what we do.

Truth Be Told

List: Civil War Movies

Posted on April 12, 2011 at 3:47 pm

As we observe the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, a defining moment for good and bad in American history, it is a good time to watch some of these great films that show how we continue to try to make sense of its causes and its consequences.

1. Glory Denzel Washington won his first Oscar in this story of the doomed 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, one of the first black units to be made up of black soldiers. Writer-director Edward Zwick is sensitive to the many levels of the story but above all it is a compelling and heart-rending drama of honor and courage under the most devastating circumstances.

2. The Red Badge of Courage A young soldier learns courage does not mean lack of fear; it means not letting the fear stop him from doing what needs to be done in this movie based on the classic book by Stephen Crane. It stars two real-life WWII heroes, tthe most decorated soldier, Audie Murphy and Bill Mauldin, who won a Pulitzer prize for his Stars and Stripes cartoons about the men on the front.

3. The Civil War – A Film by Ken Burns This spell-binding documentary tells the story from the first bullet fired to the surrender by Robert E. Lee, with indelible images and unforgettable readings from the people who were there.

4. Friendly Persuasion Gary Cooper and Anthony Perkins star as a Quaker father and son, farmers who must decide how their faith guides them in the midst of a war that literally comes to their doorstep. This is a beautiful film, and a rare portrayal of faith that is respectful and sincere.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCn-HuYRM0g

5. Shenandoah James Stewart plays the father of sons he insists have no reason to get involved in the war, until his youngest is taken prisoner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ec-lmjqBOw0

6. Gods and Generals It is a bit stuffy, but its sincere respect for its subject and diligence about historical accuracy makes this story of Stonewell Jackson worth watching.

7. The Andersonville Trial This is the story of a court-martial trial that revealed the horribly abusive conditions of the notorious facility where Yankee prisoners were kept and explores the question of when an immortal order may be disobeyed. The outstanding cast includes William Shatner, Martin Sheen, Cameron Mitchell, and Richard Basehart. (A more recent film, Andersonville, is the story of the prisoners.)

8. The General Buster Keaton stars in this silent film about a Confederate soldier who goes on a daring mission to rescue the two things he loves most, a girl and a train. Unquestionably one of the funniest and most exciting films of all time.

9. Gone With the Wind Still the biggest box office champion of all time, this is a movie about love and war and power but mostly about survival.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9ftIzRAgAk

10. Sherman’s March A documentary film-maker plans to make a movie about the enduring impact of William Tecumseh Sherman’s devastating attack. But just before he was to begin, his girlfriend dumped him, so instead he made a movie about why his love life was such a disaster, with intermittent references to Sherman.

There are dozens more, featuring everyone from Clint Eastwood and John Wayne to Nicole Kidman, Elvis Presley, and Shirley Temple. Each is as much a reflection of its time as of the era it depicts. But together they form a mosaic to help us understand and, we hope, to preserve the union.