How to resolve AdBlock issue? Arts & Life
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- Written by: Tim Riley
A most enjoyable discovery outside of the crime genre was “International House,” a chaotic musical comedy featuring a wonderful array of clowns, including W.C. Fields, George Burns, Gracie Allen, and Franklin Pangborn, and musical cameos with Cab Calloway and Rudy Vallee.
The action takes place at a Chinese hotel where an inventor seeks bids for his super-television, but the setting is nothing more than an excuse for strange musical numbers and inspired gags, particularly naughty bits from W.C. Fields as well as goofy turns by the delightfully giddy Gracie Allen.
Just as entertaining as this hilarious film was special guest Bruce Goldstein, the founder of classic film distributor Rialto Pictures, delivering insights into the weird censorship tactics of the Hays Office, which developed the Production Code for what was morally acceptable at the cinema.
“International House,” released in 1933 was a “pre-Code” film, but nevertheless the Hays Office labeled this highly amusing lark both “vulgar” and “offensive,” and by today’s standards you’d think nothing of it.
Top billing in the film went to Peggy Hopkins Joyce, an actress and socialite known for a flamboyant lifestyle, playing herself. Goldstein summed up her notoriety with the moniker “Jazz Age Kardashian.”
As for a crime film, it doesn’t get much better than James Cagney in 1949’s “White Heat,” where his character Cody Jarrett was a psychopath who trusted nobody except his criminal mother (Margaret Wycherly). His Oedipus complex left little room for loving his faithless wife (Virginia Mayo).
Eddie Muller, the host of “Noir Alley” on Turner Classic Movies, observed that Cagney thought the script for “White Heat” was horrible, and that he supposedly enlisted Humphrey Bogart, among others, for a rewrite of what he deemed “pedestrian” material.
Interestingly, Muller claimed “White Heat” was not a gangster film, but rather an “outlaw film,” and went so far to call it “one of the greatest crime films ever made.” It may seem only fitting that this is the movie in which Cagney yelled that he was on “top of the world.”
Mentioned in a previous update, the comic caper “Gambit” starring Shirley MacLaine and Michael Caine proved to be as entertaining as could be hoped. The film fits neatly in a genre with other 60’s films like “Charade,” “Arabesque,” and “Topkapi.”
Film historian Sloan De Forest pegged “Gambit” as a “stylish romantic comedy crime film,” and noted that MacLaine used her clout to get Caine for the role of a con artist because she liked his style in “The Ipcress File,” which by the way is a terrific Cold War spy thriller.
A festival devoted to classic films would seem lacking if it didn’t include Alfred Hitchcock, arguably a good pick for best director of all time. And what could be better than “Rear Window” and “North by Northwest?” Well, you could easily choose “Psycho,” “Vertigo” or “To Catch a Thief,” among others.
Watching “North by Northwest” on the big screen in the iconic Chinese Theatre IMAX is the way to go. The scene at Mount Rushmore carries a stunning full impact when it actually looks larger than life.
Writer, director and producer Nancy Meyers introduced the film as the “Hitchcock picture to end all Hitchcock pictures,” which was what screenwriter Ernest Lehman set out to accomplish with a compilation of tropes that defined the Master of Suspense.
The chemistry between Cary Grant, the innocent man on the run, and Eva Marie Saint’s cool blonde mystery woman, was something to behold. Meyers noted her favorite line was when Grant said “How does a girl like you get to be a girl like you?”
Less than three years shy of being a centenarian, Mel Brooks has not lost his touch for making people laugh.
This year’s festival marks his seventh appearance to introduce one of his films, this time “Spaceballs.” If memory serves, his last attendance was for “The Producers” in 2018.
While his parody of science-fiction and “Star Wars” in particular was highlighted in “Spaceballs,” Brooks regaled a packed house with backstories on several of his most popular comedies.
The screening of “Blazing Saddles” for executives at Warner Brothers resulted in studio head Ted Ashley telling Brooks to take note of the cuts that needed to be made.
“A ten-minute movie” is what Brooks said would be the outcome of censorious editing, and then later, when the Western spoof was a big hit, “Ashley took credit for it,” proving Brooks’ claim that “questionable taste is good.”
“The Producers” was based on a real story, as Brooks noted he worked for a guy who took old plays on the road, and Brooks said he felt like the character Leo Bloom, enthralled to be a part of show business. In turn, the audience was enthralled with the comedy legend.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
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- Written by: Tim Riley
Early in his career, writer and director Guy Ritchie scored hits with the crime comedies “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “Snatch.” Then he had a few duds, including “Swept Away” with his then-wife Madonna.
Acknowledged as the series’ creator, and with his partial writing and directing of the TV series on Netflix, “The Gentlemen,” based upon his 2019 film of the same title, Ritchie appears to have regained his groove.
Aside from having fast-talking characters and peppy dialogue, Ritchie’s known trademarks, according to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB), include the use of frequent narration and “numerous plot threads that intersect and assist in each other’s payoffs.” That’s what you’ll find with “The Gentlemen.”
For openers, Army Captain Eddie Halstead (Theo James) is part of a UN peacekeeping force near the border of some global hotspot when he is summoned home to the British estate of his dying father, the Duke of Halstead.
Arriving at the palatial mansion, Eddie is greeted by his mother, the stoic Lady Sabrina (Joely Richardson), his younger sister Charly (Jasmine Blackborow), and his older brother Freddy (Daniel Ings), fueled by a coke addiction and an unstable nature.
Family discord erupts when the reading of the father’s will reveals that Eddie, the second son, inherits the estate and all the problems that go with it, including the hitherto unknown existence of a lucrative marijuana operation on the 15,000-acre property run by the notorious Glass mob family.
With the expectation that as the first son would inherit the estate, Freddy becomes more unhinged than usual, but it’s obvious the father knew his eldest was too reckless and impulsive to keep the family afloat.
Eddie’s first instinct is to get the mob off his property, and of course, this will be tricky. While the patriarch (Ray Winstone) resides in a comfy cell, the daughter, Susie (Kaya Scodelario), is a tough cookie who won’t give up the land without posing a serious threat of retribution.
As much as Eddie may think he wants to extricate himself from a dangerous scenario, he wastes much of his time and energy trying to save his older sibling from serious gambling debts and an unerring ability to infuriate all the wrong people.
In Ritchie style, the plot threads are numerous, starting with American billionaire Stanley Johnston (Giancarlo Esposito) who persists in trying to buy the Halstead estate. Then there is the band of nomadic types known as travelers, moving about in RVs, who believe they have a stake in the property and finagle a way into the drug business.
Crazier still is the Liverpool crime organization run by the unstable, alarming quasi-religious figure going by the name of The Gospel (Pearce Quigley), who shows uninvited to the estate with his henchmen. Even a lunatic Nazi gets in the picture.
The less said about the overall plot and the machinations of Susie and Eddie the better. “The Gentlemen” has plenty of thrills, zippy dialogue, inscrutable plot twists, and everything you would expect from a Guy Ritchie crime comedy.
‘GLORIA ESTEFAN: SINGING THROUGH STRUGGLES’ ON YOUTUBE
From Life Stories, a nonprofit media organization that produces and distributes films about people whose lives inspire meaningful change, YouTube streams the documentary interview series “The Thread” about exceptional individuals.
Season One of “The Thread” features activists, politicians, media personalities, philanthropists, authors, and athletes – all of whom ostensibly inspire viewers to find meaning in their own lives.
A great recording artist and winner of eight Grammy Awards, Cuban-American Gloria Estefan has an interesting story of being raised in a Cuban family upon immigrating to the United States in a harrowing escape from her homeland in the aftermath of the coup that brought Communist dictator Fidel Castro to power.
“Gloria Estefan: Singing Through Struggles” allows the singer to discuss being a child victim of sexual abuse and the advocacy work this experience informed, and the need to seek justice and put offenders behind bars.
Estefan tells the story of the journey of her father from Cuban police officer to participant in the failed Bay of Pigs invasion by Cuban exiles, to ultimately a U.S. military officer, as well as her own early work as an immigration translator and near-brush with a career as a spy for the CIA.
From her humble upbringing among a sisterhood of female Cuban refugees, Estefan discusses her path from a child musician performing for family at home to joining the Miami Sound Machine and stardom.
In 1975, she met keyboardist Emilio Estefan, who led a band called the Miami Latin Boys. Estefan became the lead singer and the band was renamed the Miami Sound Machine, before going on to score several Top 10 hits in the 1980s and 1990s. She married Emilio in September of 1978, and they have a son and daughter.
This deeply moving episode of “The Thread” is Estefan in her own words, telling her personal story before the glory and record-breaking stages in her career, the Grammy Awards, the Super Bowl halftime performance, and the Kennedy Center Honors.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The exhibition will run from April 19 to May 19, with an exciting artist reception and Draw-a-thon scheduled for April 25th from 4 to 6 p.m.
The Mendocino College Gallery, located at 1000 Hensley Creek Road in the Theatre Lobby of the CVPA Building, will come alive with over 200 captivating works of art created by students from diverse backgrounds.
From photography to ceramics, painting to printmaking, this showcase promises to inspire and captivate audiences with works from students hailing from the Coast Center, Lake Center, North County Center and the Ukiah Campus, as well as contributions from dual enrollment students.
The opening reception on April 25 will feature an interactive Draw-a-thon, offering attendees the opportunity to participate in the artistic process.
Dancers from the Mendocino College Repertory Dance Co. will pose in costume for those who wish to try their hand at drawing from life, with materials provided. Light refreshments will also be served.
Gallery hours for the Annual Student Show are Tuesdays, noon to 6 p.m., Wednesdays from noon to 3 p.m., Thursdays from 3 to 6 p.m., and by appointment.
Additionally, the gallery will be open to ticket holders of theater performances, providing a unique opportunity for patrons to immerse themselves in creativity before experiencing the magic of live theater.
“This annual showcase highlights the incredible talent and dedication of our students,” said Jazzminh Moore, director of the Mendocino College Gallery. “We invite the community to join us in celebrating their achievements and experiencing the diverse range of artistic expressions on display.”
Don't miss the chance to be part of this vibrant celebration of creativity. For more information, please contact
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The show will be held in the winery at 8255 Red Hills Road in Kelseyville.
Chelsea Bearce will be headlining. She is one of the funniest comics currently working in the Bay Area.
Bearce got her comedy start in Los Angeles and quickly headed to New York, where she performed at over a dozen comedy clubs regularly, including Gotham Comedy Club, New York Comedy Club, Broadway Comedy Club and Caroline’s, where she performed alongside Darrell Hammond.
She can now be found headlining at the Sacramento and San Francisco PunchLines, as well as breweries, clubs and festivals across the country.
Bearce was a featured headliner at the Colorado Springs Comedy Festival and won Best of Fest at Big Pine Comedy Festival in Phoenix, Arizona. She is also a regular on The Gateway Show and Don’t Tell Comedy.
Her blend of observational comedy and self-deprecation combined with her over the top crowd work, makes for an intimate and exciting show.
Bearce has written multiple parodies as well, including Curvy which went Viral. Do not miss her performance. She is a killer.
The featured comic will be Matt Walker. Originally from Texas, Walker now calls the Bay his home.
Walker has performed across the country, from the Tempe Improv all the way to Laugh Boston. He has also been featured at multiple comedy festivals, including Big Pine Comedy Festival, Sac Town Comedy Get Down and the San Diego Comedy Festival.
Walker also makes up one half of the Lip Sync team Judas Feast, wowing audiences with his lightning electric guitar skills.
Find Walker now as the co-host of Meat Sweats: The Podcast (iTunes, iHeartRadio).
They also will be joined by other talented guest comedians.
Comedy IRL's own Chris Ferdinandson will be the host.
For more information and currently available tickets please go to www.boatiquewines.com/events/.
