Saturday movie brief: Balm for bleak times

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Amelie 

When the day-to-day of life turns not so rosy, one of my favorite escapes is through films. Though not an all-out remedy for the blues or bleakness of any sort, personal or otherwise, movies certainly provide relief. For a little while, at least.

Yesterday being the inauguration of our 45th president, I'm in the mood...

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Saturday movie recommendations: Our post holiday viewing

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My husband and I recently discovered a few new streaming series to binge watch (Z Nation and The Crown at the top of the list) so we've spent less time on films of late. Which has severely narrowed my options for Saturday movie review posts.

That said, we have watched a few movies in the past month or so worth recommending. Some on DVD or streaming, and one in the theater.

Why recommend rather than review? Well, reviewing the first one just wouldn't be right as a review would surely reveal a major plot line that you must not know in order to fully appreciate the film. So I'll simply recommend it here versus review. The other two recommendations I've thrown in to make for a more meaty post. And because I liked them.

My three recent movie recommendations, three movies to consider adding to your Hmmm... Maybe We Should Watch That list:

COLLATERAL BEAUTY (in theaters)

Collateral Beauty ...

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Saturday movie review: SCORE: A Film Music Documentary

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My CD collection and iTunes application boast many a movie soundtrack. My husband and I have long loved cinematic scores of all sorts.

Which is why SCORE: A FILM MUSIC DOCUMENTARY was a must-see for us both from the very moment I saw it listed on the schedule for the 39th Denver Film Festival, which I have the privilege of covering this year.

SCORE, directed by Matt Schrader, is a joyous examination of the work and dedication of those who masterfully match music to movies. Composers, film historians, and...

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Here and now: October 21, 2016

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What's up in my world:

old time clock and book 

ON MY MIND...
Mail-in ballots. Voting used to be an event for my husband and me. Although we nearly always canceled out one another's vote on national elections (we did agree for the most part on local issues and amendments), we always — always — went to the polls together. Even if that meant rearranging lunch hours or heading to the polls early as can be, depending on our schedules when we both had full-time jobs. Going to the polling place was a big deal. We were proud to exercise our right and responsibility together, we delighted in sporting our I VOTED stickers afterward.

Now most of our elections are done via mail-in ballot. We both thoroughly

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Here and now: April 14, 2016

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What's happening in my world, here and now:

clock and book 

On my mind...

My taxes. Not because I need to do them, but because I just finished them. Filed them yesterday morning. My brain is still mulling over numbers, deductions, credits, and crap I really don't like to think about. Jim is the numbers person in our relationship; I'm more the words person. But because...

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Saturday movie review: Man Up

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We're taught that one shouldn't judge a book by its cover. I learned last week that the same should be said for movie titles — don't judge the film by its title.

If I had given in to my initial reaction to this week's film, MAN UP, based on its title, I would have missed out on a sweet, silly-yet-smart romantic comedy. The only thing that saved me from scrolling on by MAN UP while searching through Netflix was Lake Bell, whose understated, self-deprecating sense of humor always makes me chuckle.

man up movie poster

In the screwball comedy with an ill-fitting title, Bell stars as 34-year-old Nancy, who's single and

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Here and now: March 3, 2016

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It's been a while since I've shared what's happening right here, right now in my world. Here goes:

here and now

On my mind...

My dad. The week I found out Lyla had brain cancer, I also found out my dad was diagnosed with a relatively rare form of cancer that's, kind of, a precursor to leukemia, something called...

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The concussion discussion from a grandparent's perspective

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My Q&A with Being Brain Healthy author Ruth Curran

concussion movie posterWill Smith's film CONCUSSION, based on the true story of one brave doctor's unrelenting efforts to enlighten the NFL about the effects of continual trauma to the brains of football players, has opened the eyes of many to the dangers of America's favorite sport. Concussions affect far more than just football players, though, and the movie has also opened the door for many important discussions about the effects of brain injuries of all sorts, suffered by all ages, regardless of the cause.

I have long been concerned about concussions in my rambunctious, active, sports-loving grandsons, so I turned to Ruth Curran, author of Being Brain Healthy, to assuage some of the worries and concerns I have as a grandmother. See, grandparents, unless they're in a situation where they serve as primary caretaker for their grandchildren, have little say in the day-to-day care of their beloved grandkids, can't restrict certain sports or activities. That doesn't mean we have no concerns.

being brain healthy by ruth curranHere, Curran addresses my concussion...

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