New England is girding its loins for a huge blizzard that
descends tonight. I scoff at the reaction most of the time when a snow storm is
inbound because New Englanders know what to do with snow when it arrives. Every
now and then though a beast like this
arrives - definitely a cause for concern. The mere 6-10” were pretty much
sloughed off this past Saturday but this new one unquestionably has our
attention.
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| The Forecast - I'm Right Between the 7 and . in 27.1 This is Going to Suck |
The grocery store was mobbed yesterday as supplies were laid
in. I hadn’t been paying too much attention until I saw that crowd. Checking in
with the weather forecasters was sobering. The snow will start this evening and
continue through Wednesday A.M. with the storm’s peak lasting from 2a.m. to 2p.m.
Tuesday. That’s a serious storm and it will be accompanied by some brutal winds
which means I’m looking at the usual mountainuous snow drifts across the
hilltop driveway. The tropical wife is sending condolencesing warm thoughts
from Panama while simultaneously celebrating her tropical escape (I’m sure a
happy dance was involved). We’re all blaming my excellent boss at work because in
a budget meeting a couple weeks ago he was reveling in how much snow removal money
we were saving in the theretofore snowless winter. Children of the 1970s will
recall it’s not nice to fool with Mother Nature.
In an act that will surprise absolutely no one I took in
another movie yesterday with The Imitation Game which was startlingly good. A
movie that can take the story of a thoroughly unlikeable mathematician breaking
codes and make him and the story memorable is a true achievement. The movie
also included a healthy dose of the subtle British humor which I love. Benedict
Cumberbatch is riveting in the lead role as the tortured genius who designed a
rudimentary computer to break an unbreakable Nazi code. This is one of those
rare moments in cinema where an actor transcends the material and is worth
watching just to see a master at his craft. He’s ably supported by the cast,
most especially Matthew Goode, Keira Knightly, and Mark Strong. This movie
should be dull but it soars – exceptional acting can do that.
On the other end of the spectrum is The Interview which inexplicably
popped up on Netflix’ instant view availability over the weekend. I wanted to
see it ever since the huge controversy surrounding the North Korean cyber-attack
but it never came to a local theater. I can see why the North Koreans were pissed
off since they revere their supreme leader as godlike and he’s treated with
cartoonlike savagery here. James Franco plays a self-absorbed entertainment TV
host supported by friend and producer Seth Rogen. They score the interview with
Kim Jong-un and are promptly recruited by the CIA to assassinate him. There are
some laugh out loud moments but Franco lacks Rogen’s comic timing and the film
suffers when the two are separated. There’s a half-hearted attempt at satire
but this was more of their usual frat boy humor than anything else. The actor
playing Kim Jong-un is almost too good because he nearly makes the dictator
likeable. If you like lowbrow humor, with Rogen that’s guaranteed, then you’ll like
this, which I guilty admit that I did. Of course my brow is definitely of a
southern orientation.
Time to go batten down some hatches.
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