A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019): Magazine writer with anger issues with his father is assigned to write a profile of Mr. Rogers. The interview turns into therapy. Rogers is a saint, the same off camera as on. Hanks has Rogers down. The movie is more Matthew Rhys's. B+

POTD: Gullfoss

From 2019 03 01 Iceland

Today's photo-of-the-day shows Gullfoss (Golden Falls), a waterfall located in the canyon of the Hvítá river in southwest Iceland. It was both very cold and very windy the day we visited in late winter.

Ford v Ferrari (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes

Ford v Ferrari (2019): A sports movie. A good one, but still. Predictable plot. Two-dimensional characters. Clichéd dialog. The guys from Ford are supposed to be the good guys, but I found myself cheering for the "wops" from Ferrari. Good performance by Christian Bale. B-

Idle Thoughts: Family of Grifters

Tweets from November, 2019:

• 2019-11-01: Parasite (2019): Korean. Family of grifters con a rich family. All is going well until a complication arises. Then it's chaos. A black comedy with violence, suspense, and farce. Just when you think writers have written themselves into a corner, they escape. Over and over. A-
• 2019-11-02: Whose was bigger? The Washington Nat's World Series victory celebration or the Trump inauguration crowd? Trick question: the correct answer to any question about whose is bigger is never Trump.
• 2019-11-04: Echo in the Canyon (2019): Documentary about a magical place and time when the mid-60s California Sound was in its prime. Reminiscences by many of the musical geniuses of how they inspired each other. Lots of 2015 tribute concert. Lots overlooked. Not enough old video. B+
• 2019-11-04: Thread. Maybe the most important message you'll read during the 2020 election campaign.

After the jump, more idle thoughts.

The Irishman (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Irishman (2019): Scorsese directs De Niro, Pacino, Pesci (that's all you need) in a 3.5 hour intimate epic (there can be such a thing) about the mob and the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa. A disapproving look from De Niro's daughter, just a look, supplies the morality. A-

POTD: Geysir and Strokkur

From 2019 03 01 Iceland

Today's photo-of-the-day is from central Iceland, the land of fire and ice. Here is a basin of geysers and hot springs. This particular geyser is named Strokkur. A larger, but less regular geyser (we didn't see it erupt during our visit) is named Geysir. It's the geyser that gave all other geysers around the world the name.

Stuber (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes

Stuber (2019): Big fan of Kumail Nanjiani but this movie misuses him. More a violent action movie than comedy. Does neither genre justice. Dave Bautista is given more role than he can carry as an actor. C-

Knives Out (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes

Knives Out (2019): Wry murder mystery that's worthy of and pays tribute to Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, CSI, and Murder, She Wrote. Convoluted plot (a donut hole inside a donut inside a donut hole) that never takes itself seriously (*cough* Daniel Craig's accent). B+

Where'd You Go, Bernadette? (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes

Where'd You Go, Bernadette? (2019): Cate Blanchette as an manic-depressive, anti-social architect whose problems stem from leaving her career. Artists need to create. Great lead performance in a role that the audience can never quite connect with or cheer for in the end. C+

POTD: The Mid-Atlantic Ridge, Revealed

From 2019 03 01 Iceland

Today's photo-of-the-day is from central Iceland. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a mountain range located along the floor of the Atlantic Ocean on the dividing line between the Eurasian and American tectonic plates. For most of its length, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is under water, but a portion of it is visible above sea level. That's Iceland. The tectonic plates are pulling apart at a rate of about 1 inch per year. This photo shows where that pulling apart is happening in Iceland. Find just the right crack in the ground, perhaps right under that house, straddle it, and you can claim you are standing with one foot in Eurasia and the other in America.