The film will be shown on Sunday, Dec. 11, at the Clearlake United Methodist Church, 14521 Pearl Ave/, in Clearlake.

Doors open at 5:30 [/,/ for socializing and snack-grabbing. The film begins at 6 p.m.

This fascinating and shocking 52-minute documentary is all the more impressive due to the quiet, even congenial manner in which John Perkins, former economic hit man, shares just how huge corporations, with the help of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the CIA (not to mention the School of the Americas) seize control in “developing” countries.

He quit in disgust years ago and now confesses the truth.

Perkins is the NYT’s best-selling author of “Confessions of an Economic Hit Man.”

In his high-level job he would approach the head of state (and his cronies) in a poor country with lots of raw resources.

He would bribe them to allow US or multi-national businesses to exploit their resources in ways that benefited the corporations and the ruling class, but impoverished and sometimes poisoned their people.

If the ruler was unconvinced by the bribe, he would be told that next “the jackals” and then an assassination team would appear. Most often, the leader was convinced by this threat, usually with CIA help.

But not every leader has caved. In 1953, for example, Iran’s democratically elected President Mossadegh resisted and was forced out of office by Kermit Roosevelt and the CIA, to be replaced by the dictatorial shah.

Later, democratically elected President Allende of Chile, who wanted Chile's riches for his people, was assassinated at his desk with much CIA involvement on Sept. 11, 1973. He was replaced by the dictator Pinochet.

Kam Williams, writing in EURweb, says of this documentary, “Despite death threats, in this revealing expose John Perkins details exactly how America goes about cheating less powerful nations, exploiting their citizens while helping itself to their natural resources.”

This free documentary will help viewers prepare for Chris Martenson’s three-disc “Crash Course,” which Second Sunday Cinema will screen over three Sundays in January.

On Dec. 11, Second Sunday Cinema will show the first two chapters (only 17 minutes) of the “Crash Course.”

Using official US and UN graphs and numbers, this course shows why Martenson, a research scientist, believes “the next 20 years will be completely unlike the last 20 years.” This is due to the convergence of stark environmental realities, resource depletion, and capitalism's need for exponential growth.

For more information about Second Sunday Cinema call 707-889-7355.

The center is located at 4444 Railroad Ave. in downtown Pleasanton. Admission is $5, or free to students with ID.

Bryant and 13 other California poets will convene to read their poetry.

Included on the program with Bryant will be Lake County's James Blue Wolf, Albert Flynn DeSilver, Stephanie Freele, Deborah Grossman, Parthenia M. Hicks, Ronnie Holland, Penelope La Montagne, Juanita Martin, Michael McLaughlin, Jim Ott, Sam Pierstorff, Connie Post and Mary Rudge.

The program will be followed by holiday treats, opportunities to meet and speak with the Laureates, purchase their books and have them signed.

James Don Blue Wolf has been a songwriter, recording artist, performer, lecturer, poet, author and storyteller since the early 1970s. An internationally published poet, BlueWolf's first book of poetry, "Sitting By His Bones," was published in 1999 by Earthen Vessel Productions. He was the Poet Laureate of Lake County, Calif. from 2000 to 2004.

Cynthia Bryant is currently serving as the seventh Poet Laureate for Pleasanton, after having served as the fourth Laureate from 2005-2007. She was first published in 1997 after winning 3rd place in a national poetry contest and has since been published in more than 30 anthologies, numerous websites, and an e-book.

Albert Flynn DeSilver is an internationally published poet, writer, speaker/trainer, and entrepreneur. He was Marin County’s very first Poet Laureate, 2008-2010. He is the author of Letters to Early Street, Spring 2007, and Walking Tooth & Cloud, January 2007.

Stefanie Freele’s short story collection, Feeding Strays was finalist for both the Book of the Year Award and the 2010 Binghamton University John Gardner Fiction Book Award. Surrounded by Water, a second collection of short stories will be released 2012. Freele is the 2010-2011 Healdsburg Literary Laureate.

Deborah Grossman is the Poet Laureate Emerita of Pleasanton from 2009-2011. She is the author of Goldie and Me, a book about family, friendship and freedom and is a board member of the Ina Coolbrith Circle. She is also an independent food, wine and travel journalist who writes for publications such as Wine Enthusiast and Decanter.

Parthenia M. Hicks is the Poet Laureate of Los Gatos and the recipient of the Arts Council Silicon Valley Fellowship for Literature in the genre of Short Story. Her recent work is featured in The Call: An Anthology of Women’s Writing; Remembering: An Anthology of Poems, and Sweet Obsession: The Art of Lynn Powers.

Ronnie Holland served a two-year community volunteer position as the first Poet Laureate for Dublin from May 2008-May 2010. She has been published many anthologies, including the (first) 2009 California Poets Laureate Anthology, Sometimes in the Open. She collaborated with artist Lily Xu on a 2010 chapbook, Where a Painter meets a Poet.

Penelope La Montagne was Poet Laureate of Healdsburg, Calif., 2004-2006. She is author of chapbook, River Shoes, and participates in the California Poet in the Schools program.

Juanita Martin currently serves as Fairfield, Calif.'s first Poet Laureate. She is an award-winning poet, freelance writer and performance artist. Active member in the Coolbrith Circle, Redwood Writers, and Marin Poetry Center, she is currently working on a book of poetry called The Light House Beckons.

Michael McLaughlin is a three-time California Arts Council $17,000 grant recipient. He has used poetry in his work with incarcerated youth and adults for 23 years and is the San Luis Obispo County Area Coordinator for California Poets in the Schools. McLaughlin was Poet Laureate of San Luis Obispo. in 2003.

Jim Ott was appointed second Poet Laureate of Pleasanton, 2001-2003. A teacher of writing at Las Positas College since 1997, he is active on several foundations and boards in the Tri-Valley area. He hosts a television program about books and authors and is a newspaper columnist.

Sam Pierstorff became the youngest Poet Laureate ever appointed in the state of California in 2004 in Modesto. His debut poetry collection, Growing Up in Someone Else's Shoes, was published by World Parade Books last year.

Connie Post served as the first Poet Laureate of Livermore, 2005- 2009. Her most recent book “Trip Wires”, which received praise from, California’s former Poet Laureate Al Young, was released in September 2010.

Mary Rudge has been the ongoing Poet Laureate of Alameda since 2002. She is a member of the World Congress of Poets and other poetry societies and organizations.

For information, contact Michelle Russo at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 925-931-4847.

Ted Kooser, US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. Photo by UNL Publications and Photography.

Here’s a fine poem about a cricket by Catherine Tufariello, who lives in Indiana. I especially admire the way in which she uses rhyme without it ever taking control of the poetry, the way rhyme can.

The Cricket in the Sump

He falls abruptly silent when we fling

A basket down or bang the dryer shut,

But soon takes up again where he left off.

Swept by a rainstorm through a narrow trough

Clotted with cobwebs into Lord knows what

Impenetrable murk, he’s undeterred—

You’d think his dauntless solo was a chorus,

This rusty sump, a field or forest spring.

And there is something wondrous and absurd

About the way he does as he is bidden

By instinct, with his gift for staying hidden

While making sure unseen is plainly heard.

All afternoon his tremolo ascends

Clear to the second story, where a girl

Who also has learned blithely to ignore us

Sings to herself behind her bedroom door.

Maybe she moves to her invented score

With a conductor’s flourish, or pretends

She’s a Spanish dancer, lost in stamp and whirl

And waving fan—notes floating, as she plays,

Through the open window where the willow sways

And shimmers, humming to another string.

There is no story where the story ends.

What does a singer live for but to sing?

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2010 by Catherine Tufariello, whose first book of poetry is Keeping My Name, Texas Tech, 2004. Reprinted from Able Muse, Inaugural Print Issue, Winter 2010, by permission of Catherine Tufariello and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. They do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

THE DESCENDANTS (Rated R)

The genius behind the camera for “Sideways,” director Alexandra Payne, returns to the screen after a long absence with “The Descendants.” The extended wait was well worth it.

Not quite in the class of quirky director Terrence Malick, Payne nevertheless shares the same sensibility of not rushing to crank out an endless procession of passable fare.

As he also demonstrated with “Election” and “About Schmidt,” Payne, often a screenwriter as well as director, has a knack for dramatic comedies or satires that thrive on being observant of the human condition.

“The Descendants” is almost in a class by itself. Like Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris,” Payne’s latest work deserves accolades and awards as of the one of the best movies of the year.

Another superb achievement is that superstar George Clooney becomes an Everyman in bedraggled Honolulu lawyer Matt King, the primary trustee of a large tract of pristine beachfront property held in a family trust.

In his best performance ever, Clooney plays the part of a bewildered father of two precocious, free-spirited daughters who is thrust by circumstances into the unwanted task of assuming the role of principal parent.

At the film’s opening we see Matt’s wife water-skiing with wild abandon on Waikiki Beach. Then, rather abruptly, we learn that a boating accident rendered her comatose and in a death watch at the local hospital.

Matt’s oldest daughter Alexandra (an excellent Shailene Woodley), a high school senior, was sent away to a boarding school where her rebellious ways remain unchecked. Her problem with substance abuse is evident.

Meanwhile, 10-year-old Scottie (Amara Miller), a happier kid, worries that her heretofore absentee father may not be up to job of parenthood. For his part, Matt refers to himself as the “backup parent.”

In the wake of the family tragedy, Alexandra is brought back to Honolulu and workaholic Matt goes about the mundane business of trying to hold the family together in a time of crisis.

Matt’s job is complicated by other factors, some of which should not be revealed so honestly that the element of surprise is needlessly blunted. Suffice it to say that marital discord intrudes in a big way.

To say that Matt King is a flawed character would be an understatement. Playing the part calls for Clooney to deliver a performance that is often slow and plodding, and not the least bit flashy.

With graying hair and rumpled clothes, Matt is a man adrift, unsure of himself while he confronts his cranky father-in-law (Robert Forster) and deals frankly with Realtor Brian Speer (Matthew Lilliard).

An even bigger confrontation looms with a frenzied bunch of greedy cousins who insist on selling the ancestral land to hotel and condo developers. Cousin Hugh (Beau Bridges), seemingly a laid-back hippie type, is the orneriest of the group.

As befitting the movie’s title, Matt is keenly aware of his Hawaiian heritage. He is descended from a Hawaiian princess who married a wealthy white banker. His dilemma is how he will honor and cherish his lineage.

Adding to the dysfunction of the King household is Alexandra’s boyfriend Sid (Nick Krause), the stereotypical clueless slacker who at first provides comic relief, and yet later surprises everyone with his innate wisdom.

The genius of “The Descendants” is that virtually every character brings essential pathos, passion or comic relief to the film, which is realized by the film’s perfect blend of humor and drama.

With Clooney and the wonderful Shailene Woodley leading the way, “The Descendants” offers the audience the rare gift of being truly invested in the arc of each character’s story.

There is nothing about “The Descendants” that feels anything less than genuine, nor does it manipulate the audience. The humor, passion and emotions are real. Don’t pass up the chance to see it.

DVD RELEASE UPDATE

One of the highly anticipated holiday movies is Steven Spielberg’s “The Adventures of Tintin,” based on the comic strip creation of Belgian cartoon artist Herge.

The Spielberg film will be an ambitious motion capture animated film, but you can get your taste of what “Tintin” is all about with the DVD release of “The Adventures of Tintin: Season One.”

The DVD release brings to our shores the popular animated TV series that chronicled the adventures of the young, intrepid investigative reporter Tintin and his faithful dog Snowy as they embarked on globe-trotting missions.

Unfortunately, most Americans are unfamiliar with the great series of graphic “Tintin” novels, which were translated in 80 languages and published in over 50 countries.

Though Steven Spielberg intends to raise our awareness of the popular comic strip character, it would be best to experience the excitement and wonder of “The Adventures of Tintin” at home before heading to the local multiplex this Christmas.

The DVD’s 13 episodes includes several of the graphic novels, offering a great chance to be familiar with other characters like the crusty Captain Haddock, the muddled genius Professor Calculus and the bumbling detectives Thompson and Thomson.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

The concert is sponsored by Clear Lake Performing Arts.

Conductor John Parkinson is scheduling not only many of the traditional holiday favorites such as the Nutcracker Suite, the Parade of the Wooden Soldiers, Leroy Anderson's ever-popular "Sleigh Ride" "Winter Wonderland," "It's a Most Wonderful Time of the Year" and many others, but is once again presenting a medley of jazz arrangements.

These have become increasingly popular in recent holiday concerts both in Lake County and other venues.

They feature local soloists, including Shelly Mascari and Sarah Cunningham. Mascari recently wowed the Soper-Reese audience with her renditions from the opera "Carmen."

Her singing partner in that event, Carl Stewart, will also return to deliver a solo of "O Holy Night" backed by the orchestra.

Another tradition – the singing of the "Hallelujah Chorus" by the audience – returns, this time with the local vocal group "EarReverance" leading the way.

The CLPA Youth Orchestra, led by conductor Susan Condit, also promises something a little different than the usual Christmas fare.

"Angels Bach has Heard on High" has been described as coming right out of the J.S. Bach family songbook, even though it was written and arranged by contemporary composer Owen Goldsmith, a native of Borger, Texas, who now lives in California's Sierra foothills.

Her second selection has been entitled "Five Ukrainians in a Bell Tower" by arranger Rick England who adapted it from Mykola Leontovych's holiday favorite "Carol of the Bells."

England's arrangement is in 5/4 time, similar to that used by Dave Brubeck in his classic "Take Five." It will feature a quartet of former Youth Orchestra members Annie Perez, violin #1, Erin Call, Violin #2, Aaron Bielenberg, Viola and Amanda Bronson, Cello.

Reserved seats may be obtained by contacting www.soperreesetheatre.com or by phone at 707-263-0577, or by visiting the theater box office at 275 S. Main St. in Lakeport Thursdays or Fridays from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Youngsters under 18 will be admitted free to the full dress concert starting at 11 a.m., and adults, too, can enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of this presentation, for an entry fee of just $5.